The Supreme Court deferred the hearing of a petition challenging the National Testing Agency’s (NTA) decision to cancel and conduct a fresh National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate) (NEET-UG) 2026 examination for nearly 22 lakh candidates.The matter, which sought immediate relief against the proposed re-examination scheduled for June 21, will now be taken up in July after the court resumes regular hearings.According to a report by Live Law, the petition was listed before a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice V Mohana. However, the bench did not hear the matter and directed that it be placed before a bench headed by Justice PS Narasimha, who is already dealing with several matters related to the NEET examination.The Supreme Court is scheduled to resume regular sittings from July 13, after which the matter will be taken up by Justice Narasimha’s bench.
Plea challenges NTA’s decision to cancel NEET-UG 2026
The petition was filed by former Assistant Director General of Health Services (DGHS) Dr Mangala Kohli, challenging the NTA’s decision to cancel the NEET-UG 2026 examination conducted on May 3 and order a nationwide re-test following allegations of paper leak and examination malpractice.The plea seeks a stay on the re-examination process and requests the court to prevent authorities from moving ahead with the June 21 re-test until the case is decided.The petitioner has argued that while allegations of malpractice must be investigated seriously, a blanket cancellation of the entire examination unfairly affects thousands of students who appeared without any involvement in the alleged wrongdoing.
‘Bona fide candidates cannot suffer due to administrative failures’
As reported by Live Law, the petition stated that the rights and interests of genuine candidates cannot be compromised because of failures attributed to the examination authorities.The plea said that allegations of paper leaks and irregularities require strict action against those responsible but argued that innocent students should not bear the consequences of such failures.The petition further claimed that the available material suggested that the alleged malpractice was limited to specific individuals, examination centres and organised groups rather than the entire examination system.It argued that cancelling the examination for all candidates and ordering a nationwide re-test was an “arbitrary, excessive and disproportionate” decision, allegedly violating constitutional protections under Articles 14, 19(1)(g) and 21.
Petition seeks reforms in examination system
Apart from challenging the re-test decision, the petition has also raised concerns over the larger process of conducting national-level competitive examinations.The plea has sought directions for introducing stronger digital security measures, including encrypted delivery of question papers, biometric authentication, artificial intelligence-based monitoring systems and computer-based examination infrastructure.It has also requested the formation of an independent expert committee to examine operational and institutional shortcomings within the NTA and suggest reforms.The development comes amid a wider debate over examination security, student rights and the responsibility of testing agencies in protecting the integrity of high-stakes entrance examinations.
