Alakh Pandey Urges Supreme Court to Address NEET-UG 2024 Exam Irregularities Amidst Allegations and Protests

Alakh Pandey, the creator of the well-known EdTech company Physics Wallah, has asked the Supreme Court to take up the NEET-UG 2024 exam-related matters. There has been criticism around purported irregularities in this national-level entrance exam, which is administered by the National Testing Agency (NTA) and is required for admission to MBBS and other medical courses. In his suit, Mr. Pandey alleges that the NTA arbitrarily granted grace marks to more than 1,500 contestants. He has asked the Supreme Court to form a panel of experts to examine the examination procedure and findings. About 24 lakh students took part in the NEET-UG 2024, which was held on May 5 across 4,750 centers. Although the results were expected on June 14, they were leaked ahead of schedule on June 4, purportedly as a result of accelerated answer sheet reviews.

Allegations of question paper leaks and grace mark granting sparked a controversy that resulted in large-scale demonstrations, court challenges in seven high courts, and a Supreme Court case. Suspicions of irregularities have been raised by the exceptional result, in which 67 students scored a perfect 720, six of them came from a single center in Faridabad, Haryana. Students in Delhi staged a demonstration on June 10th, calling for a comprehensive inquiry into these claims. It is thought that the exceptionally large number of top scores may have been caused by the controversial grace marks. The NTA is in charge of the NEET-UG exam, which is a requirement for medical admissions in both public and private hospitals throughout India. Protests and legal scrutiny have been sparked by questions about the integrity of this year's procedure.

Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan calmed candidates and parents by saying there isn't any solid proof of a paper leak. He stated that qualified authorities are looking into the claims. As of now, there is no proof of a paper leak. Appropriate authorities are investigating the allegations. A few claims and fragments of information are emerging. Let us await the investigation by the relevant authorities. Let's await the Supreme Court's ruling till July 8. Nothing is to be hidden. Pradhan said to NDTV. The Minister gave students comfort by pointing out that the Supreme Court has already rendered a decision on the matter. He declared that all 1,563 impacted students, particularly those from the six centers where time limitations were recorded, would have the chance to retake the exam.

Notwithstanding these actions, concerns regarding the NTA's approach prior to the Supreme Court's involvement still exist. "That is untrue. Following the discovery of the anomaly, the NTA developed the grace mark formula. The Supreme Court cited it as well. But since six pupils rose to the top of the list, there were some irregularities in that formula. Many kids thought that was an eyesore, according to Mr. Pradhan. Mr. Pradhan met with a delegation of parents and kids, and he asked them to have faith in the government's resolve and efforts to make things right. He rejected proposals to do away with the NEET, arguing that it is still a useful tool and mentioning the top student from a rural Tamil Nadu state board from the previous year.