BREAKING: "No re-NEET" — SC says lack of widespread data to vitiate sanctity of NEET-UG

Today, Tuesday, July 23, the Supreme Court in its final hearing of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test - Undergraduate (NEET-UG) 2024 case announced that there is no widespread data to show that the results of the NEET-UG are vitiated entirely and that there was a systemic breach in its sanctity. This was stated in a report by Live Law. Hence, there will be no re-NEET.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra resumed hearing the case today, July 23. The NEET UG exams have been under scrutiny for alleged irregulates and paper leak concerns, malpractices and so on. 

During the hearing, the Chief Justice noted that about “23 lakh 33 thousand candidates appeared for the exam. They are competing for 1.08 lakh seats of which 56,000 seats are in the government hospital, balance 52,000 being in a private institution,” reported Live Law.

Following this, while pronouncing the verdict, DY Chandrachud said, “Court is mindful of the fact that directing a fresh NEET UG would have serious consequences on the 2 million students appearing for the exam...”

Senior advocate Mathews Nedumpara, representing petitioners said, “This was the issue of governance and that the government very conveniently did not raise the issue of maintainability of these petitions." 

Meanwhile, Advocate Narender Hooda, who appeared on behalf of petitioners, said that the main mastermind Sanjeev Mukhiya who was involved in five paper leak cases, has not been arrested yet.

To recall, a batch of pleas were filed in the Supreme Court and high courts after the NEET UG results were announced on June 4. 

The petitions sought cancellation, re-test and a court-monitored probe into the NEET UG 2024 exam held on May 5, and more. The CBI confirmed that the paper leak in the NEET UG case had taken place in Jharkhand's Hazaribagh centre.