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NEET UG Exam 2024 SC Hearing Live Updates: The Supreme Court resumed hearing pleas related to the controversy-ridden National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG) 2024 today at 10:30 am. The exam has been marred by alleged irregularities, including a reported paper leak. Following the Supreme Court’s directions in the July 18 session, the National Testing Agency (NTA) released the results of the medical entrance exam categorized by city and exam center on Saturday. Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, leading a three-judge bench, had said, “We direct the NTA to publish the marks obtained by students at the UG-2024 NEET examination, while, at the same time, without disclosing the identity of the students. The result should be declared city and centre-wise by 12 noon on 20 July 2024 and shall be uploaded on the website of the NTA.” The court observed that any decision to conduct the NEET-UG 2024 afresh must be based on solid evidence proving that the integrity of the entire medical entrance exam was compromised. According to LiveLaw, the counsel argued that the NTA attributed the inflation of marks to a reduction in the syllabus. However, the syllabus has both increased and decreased in certain areas. NTA is set to submit a note addressing the questions posed by the Bench following the lunch recess. The NTA Counsel clarified that grace marks were granted solely to students whose papers were withdrawn mid-exam. The bench, consisting of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, is hearing nearly 40 pleas concerning the alleged irregularities in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test, Undergraduate ( NEET UG ) 2024. The Chief Justice of India , DY Chandrachud, has asked the following questions to NTA: - How many centres were Canara bank papers distributed? - Out of those centres, how many saw the correct question booklets ( SBI paper) being replaced? - At how many centers were the Canara Bank exam papers evaluated? - What were the results for the candidates after the Canara Bank exam papers were evaluated? As the Supreme Court hearing on the NTA NEET UG 2024 continues, the bench has adjourned for lunch. Before rising, Chief Justice of India (CJI) remarked, "In many professional exams, students often select certain centers due to the perception of lenient marking. However, this alone may not justify cancelling the entire exam." On Monday, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi launched a fierce critique of the government regarding the recent allegations of paper leaks in the NEET exams, calling attention to what he described as a "very serious problem" within the nation's examination system. Gandhi highlighted that students across the country are increasingly convinced that financial resources can manipulate the examination process. During his address in the Lok Sabha at the start of the Budget Session, Gandhi challenged Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, questioning the measures the Ministry is taking to address what he termed a "systemic" issue within the current examination framework. "Millions of students believe that the system is 'fraud,' and this issue extends beyond NEET to all major examinations in the country," Gandhi stated. Gandhi criticized Pradhan for allegedly failing to grasp the severity of the issue and suggested that the Education Minister had been shifting blame rather than addressing the core problems. "The Minister has blamed everyone but himself. I don’t think he understands the fundamentals of the situation," Gandhi remarked. CJI inquires, "How do you establish that the paper leak has spread across the country?" Advocate Sanjay Hegde intervened, stating, "6 people per 1,000 on average score above 650 marks nationally. That should be the reference point." In response to Adv Hooda's arguments regarding irregularities in Sikar, CJI asked, "Can that be a ground to cancel the exam for the entire country or just for Sikar?" Advocate Hooda has raised questions about the 'excellent' results from Sikar students, leading to a focused analysis by The Indian Express. This year's data shows that out of the total candidates, a little over 81,000 (3.49 percent) scored 600 and above out of 720 marks. This is a significant increase compared to 2023, where 29,351 candidates (1.43 percent) achieved the same, and 2022, with 21,164 candidates (1.19 percent). City-wise and centre-wise results released by the NTA, as ordered by the Supreme Court , reveal that over 100 of the 4,750 test centres had more than three times the national average of high-scoring candidates (600 and above). More than half of these 109 centres are located in Sikar (44) and Kota (16), both coaching hubs in Rajasthan. Specifically, in Sikar, 24 of the 44 test centres had at least five times (18 percent and above) the national average of candidates scoring over 600 marks. What is the time when the OMR sheet is to be sealed? It is not mentioned. It keeps lying in the Centre. There is no procedure which NTA has prescribed. If 5.20 the OMR sheets are collected, they have to be selaed at 5.30,' claims Adv Hooda, adding that he could not find the proper sealing time in NTA's SoP. Advocate Hooda pointed out several issues during the NEET UG 2024 Supreme Court hearing: - Hooda : "In Sikar, there are 49 centers, with only one being Kendriya Vidyalaya. The rest are private schools with private coordinators and invigilators. They even showed photos of a village school where the exam was conducted, which doesn't have a boundary wall." - Hooda: "At Hardayal School, a student who initially scored 719 marks and ranked 68, dropped to a rank of 58,000 after a retest. It's unclear whether the Canara Bank or SBI paper was given. On June 4, only the SBI key was released, and they did not disclose that grace marks were given." Advocate Hooda highlighted another issue during the NEET UG 2024 Supreme Court hearing: Hooda: "At Hardayal School, students were given grace marks. Six of them received full marks. If the Canara Bank paper was attempted, how could there be a question of giving grace marks?" In the Supreme Court hearing for NEET-UG 2024, Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud raised critical questions regarding the distribution and handling of the Canara Bank question papers: - CJI: How does Canara Bank verify that the individual receiving the papers is authorized? Who issues the authorization letter? - SG: The Director General of NTA issues these letters to City Coordinators. - CJI: What documentation does the individual bring to the bank? Is the authorization valid for both SBI and Canara Bank, or just one? During the ongoing Supreme Court hearing on NEET-UG 2024, Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud posed several key questions to the National Testing Agency (NTA) and the Centre regarding the distribution and handling of the Canara Bank question papers: - How many exam centres received the Canara Bank papers? - At these centres, in how many instances were incorrect question papers replaced with the correct ones? - Overall, how many centres used Canara Bank papers for evaluation, and how did students perform at these centres? - Why has the key for the Canara Bank papers not been declared? - How does Canara Bank verify the legitimacy of individuals authorized to issue the papers? Who issues these authorization letters, and do they hold authorization for both Canara Bank and SBI ? Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud questioned the rationale behind awarding grace marks for the NEET-UG 2024 exam. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta responded, stating that the decision to award grace marks was deemed incorrect. He explained that the initial decision to grant grace marks was based on time-related issues, but it was later retracted, and a re-test was conducted. During the Supreme Court hearing on NEET-UG 2024, both the National Testing Agency (NTA) and the Centre admitted to a "mistake" regarding the distribution of question papers to Jhajjar schools. Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud questioned how a representative from Jhajjar managed to collect papers from Canara Bank . Solicitor General Tushar Mehta suggested it might have been an oversight. NTA Counsel explained that Jhajjar was newly added as an exam center, and the City Coordinator might not have been updated on the correct procedure, resulting in the collection of papers from both banks. CJI inquired whether the banks were notified about the new center's status, seeking clarification on the communication lapse. During the Supreme Court hearing on the NEET-UG 2024 case, Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud questioned how Hardiyal School obtained question papers from both Canara Bank and another bank. Adv. Hooda had previously highlighted that the school's principal distributed papers from Canara Bank and was on record about this discrepancy. The CJI asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to explain how this dual sourcing occurred. The Chief Justice of India (CJI) stated, "We need to determine if the paper leak was localized, with the leak occurring at 9 a.m. and solved by 10:30 a.m. If we find this implausible, the onus is on you to demonstrate that the leak extended beyond Hazaribagh and Pata. From the CBI’s third report, we know the location of the printing press, but we will not disclose it at this time." The Chief Justice of India (CJI) observed that witness statements are inconsistent. "One statement suggests the leak occurred on the evening of May 4, while another indicates May 5," CJI noted during the hearing. Hooda alleged that the question papers were in private hands for an extended period, stating, "The papers were to be dispatched to centers on April 24 and were scheduled to reach their destinations by May 3, meaning they remained with private parties for an unusually long time." The Solicitor General stated, "Following the recent hearing, we compared the success rates of this year's centers, cities, and states with data from 2022 and 2023. We found no abnormalities." Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud questioned whether the paper leak occurred at the strong room vault, stating, "If the leak happened on the night of the 4th, it obviously did not occur during transportation but rather prior, at the strong room vault." Advocate Narender Hooda alleged that the investigation into the NEET UG 2024 case is being "botched up" by the Government of India . This claim has been contested by the Solicitor General. Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, after reviewing the Bihar Police report, stated that the leak occurred before May 4. He noted that if students were asked to memorize answers on the night of May 4, it implies that the leak must have happened prior to that date. 'This indicates that students were being asked to memorize on the night of 4th which means that the leak had happened prior to 4th,' he said. "Then there are statements of Nitesh Kumar, Amit Anand and Sikander Prasad. Their 161 statements indicate that the leak is much prior to the examination," alleged Hooda, according to Live Law. The bench, consisting of Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justices J.B. Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra, is currently reviewing the statements recorded by the Bihar Police. - Timing of leak: Senior Advocate Narender Hooda argued that the leak occurred before the question papers were deposited with the banks, specifically on or before May 3. He challenged the suggestion that the leak happened on the morning of May 5, calling it implausible and contrary to Bihar police reports. - Nature of the leak: Hooda described the leak as the work of a sophisticated gang, rather than a small-scale operation involving just a few individuals. He highlighted that key figures, including Sanjeev Mukhya, have not been arrested. - Police statements: Hooda referenced the statement of Anurag Yadav recorded by the Bihar police to support his claims. 'It is not some peon who leaked the paper to 5-10 students, it was the work of a gang who have done it in past too. Sanjeev Mukhya and all have not been arrested," alleges Adv hooda. Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud inquired about what the centre-wise and city-wise data reveals. Senior Advocate Narender Hooda submitted a note based on the data, stating that the paper leak and dissemination occurred via WhatsApp . He noted that Bihar police materials indicate that students received the leaked papers on May 4, contradicting claims that the leak happened on the morning of May 5. None
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