Exact statements in Lok Sabha :
NEET-UG 2024 Paper Leak: Lok Sabha Statements
Opposition's Statements
● Rahul Gandhi (Leader of the Opposition, Congress):
○ "There are millions of students who are extremely concerned, and they are
convinced that the Indian examination system is fraud. They believe that if
you are rich and have money, you can buy the examination system."
○ "The minister has blamed everybody except himself. I don’t think he
understands the fundamentals of what’s going on here."
○ "As this is a systemic issue, what exactly are you doing to fix the issue at a
systemic level?"
● Manickam Tagore (Congress MP):
○ Questioned whether the Education Minister accepted responsibility and
would resign over the paper leaks.
● Mallikarjun Kharge (Congress President):
○ "The Modi government has told the Supreme Court that no paper has
been leaked in NEET-UG. This blatant lie is being told to lakhs of youths.
Their future is being ruined."
○ "We reiterate our demand that NEET-UG should be conducted again. It
should be conducted online in a transparent manner."
Government's Response
● Dharmendra Pradhan (Union Education Minister):
○ "No evidence of paper leak has been found in the last seven years."
○ "Regarding anomalies and some information of some malpractices, out of
4,700 centres, due to proactive approach of Bihar Police, only in one place
in Patna and surrounding points, there is an incident of anomaly. CBI is
getting into the details."
○ "A lie will not become truth just by shouting. The fact that the Leader of
Opposition says that the country’s examination system is rubbish is highly
condemnable."
○ "Already this case is before Supreme Court. The Chief Justice of India is
personally presiding over the Bench."
Sukanta Majumdar (Minister of State for Education):
"There is no material on record to indicate any proof of any large-scale breach of
confidentiality in this pan-India examination."
○ "The Ministry of Education has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation
to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the entire gamut of alleged
irregularities including conspiracy, cheating, breach of trust etc."
UGC-NET June 2024 Cancellation: Political
Reactions
Opposition's Statements
● Mallikarjun Kharge (Congress President):
○ "Narendra Modi ji, you discuss exams a lot, but when will you hold 'NEET
pareeksha pe charcha'? Cancellation of UGC-NET exam is a victory of the
passion of lakhs of students."
○ "This is the defeat of Modi government's arrogance due to which they
made a despicable attempt to trample the future of our youth."
○ "Modi ji, take responsibility to stop your government's rigging and paper
leak in NEET exam too."
● Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (Congress General Secretary):
○ "After the news of scam in NEET exam, now the NET exam held on 18th
June has also been cancelled due to the fear of irregularities. Will
accountability be fixed now? Will the Education Minister take responsibility
for this laxity?"
● Akhilesh Yadav (Samajwadi Party Chief):
○ "Under the BJP rule, the paper mafia is rigging every exam, one after the
other. This could also be someone's big conspiracy against the country."
○ "This can be a very big conspiracy against the administration and human
resources of our country, which will have far-reaching negative
consequences."
● Priyanka Chaturvedi (Shiv Sena UBT MP):
○ "This is an education emergency and also lets down lakhs of students who
diligently prepare for these entrance exams. Cancelling is not the solution;
accountability from government and NTA is."
Government's Response
The Union Education Ministry canceled the UGC-NET exam and ordered a CBI
investigation into the matter, stating that the decision was taken to maintain the integrity
of the examination process.
Supreme Court’s Verdict / Reactions :
The Supreme Court has generally taken a pragmatic approach to handling the NEET
and UGC NET 2024 paper leak cases, focusing on addressing the issues raised while
minimizing disruption to the education system. Specifically, the court has emphasized
the importance of a re-evaluation process and directed the government to implement
measures to improve exam integrity.
NEET-UG 2024:
The Supreme Court did not order a complete retest of the NEET-UG 2024 exam,
despite allegations of paper leaks.
The court found no evidence of a widespread or systemic breach of the exam's
integrity.
The court directed the Centre-appointed committee to develop and implement standard
operating procedures (SOPs) to improve cybersecurity and exam procedures.
The court also expressed concern about the NTA's "flip-flops" in conducting the exam
and criticized its lapses.
The court directed the panel led by ex-ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan to submit
recommendations for restructuring the exam process by September 30.
UGC NET 2024:
The Supreme Court rejected pleas for the complete cancellation of the UGC NET 2024
exam due to alleged paper leaks.
The court found insufficient evidence to invalidate the results.
The court acknowledged the leak but focused on the need to balance student interests
with addressing the issues raised.
Other Paper Leak Cases:
In the past, the Supreme Court has ordered retests in cases where a systemic breach
was found to affect the exam's integrity.
For example, in the 2015 case of Tanvi Sarwal, the court allowed a retest when it was
determined that 44 students had benefited from a leak of the All-India Pre Medical Test.
However, the court has also shown reluctance to order retests when the leaks are
localized or do not significantly impact the exam's validity.
Key Takeaways:
The Supreme Court's approach is to address the specific issues of the leak while
minimizing disruption to the students and the education system.
The court has emphasized the importance of improving exam integrity and security.
The court has directed the government to take concrete steps to prevent future
incidents of paper leaks.
Discussion In Lok Sabha
NEET-UG 2024 Paper Leak: Parliamentary Discussions
Opposition's Actions and Demands
● Adjournment Motions: Congress MPs Manickam Tagore and K.C.
Venugopal submitted adjournment motions in the Lok Sabha, urging the
House to suspend all listed business to discuss the "unprecedented cases
of paper leaks" in exams like NEET-UG and UGC-NET, highlighting the
failure of the National Testing Agency (NTA) .
● Leader of Opposition's Intervention: Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the
Opposition, attempted to raise the NEET-UG issue during the debate on
the motion of thanks to the President's address. However, Speaker Om
Birla declined a separate debate, leading to a walkout by opposition
members .
Government's Response
● Education Minister's Statement: Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan
addressed the concerns in the Lok Sabha, stating that there was no evidence of
a widespread paper leak in NEET-UG 2024. He acknowledged isolated incidents
in Patna and assured that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was probing
the matter .
📚 UGC-NET June 2024 Cancellation: Parliamentary Discussions
Opposition's Criticism
● Congress Leaders' Remarks: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and
General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra criticized the government following the
cancellation of the UGC-NET exam due to a paper leak. Kharge questioned
when Prime Minister Narendra Modi would address the NEET issue, while
Priyanka Gandhi demanded accountability from the Education Minister .
● Allegations of Government's Arrogance: Kharge labeled the cancellation as a
defeat of the Modi government's arrogance, accusing it of attempting to trample
the future of the youth .
Government's Action
● CBI Probe Ordered: In response to the allegations and to maintain the integrity of
the examination process, the Union Education Ministry canceled the UGC-NET
exam and ordered a CBI investigation into the matter .
1. NEET-UG 2024 Paper Leak
● Exam Date: May 5, 2024
● Locations Affected: Patna (Bihar), Hazaribagh (Jharkhand), Godhra
(Gujarat)
Patna & Hazaribagh:
● Leak Method: A day before the exam, the question paper was leaked in Patna.
Photos of the paper were taken and sent to Hazaribagh, where solvers
completed the Botany and Zoology sections by 10:15 am and Physics and
Chemistry by 10:40 am. The solved papers were then shared with candidates in
Patna and Hazaribagh.
● People Involved: 13 individuals arrested, including four examinees. The
Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar Police took over the case, uncovering
that some aspirants paid ₹30–50 lakh to brokers for the leaked paper.
● Investigation Outcome: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) identified 155
students who benefited from the leak. Despite the breach, the Supreme Court
ruled out a re-examination, citing no evidence of a widespread systemic failure.
Godhra:
● Leak Method: A schoolteacher, also the deputy superintendent of the exam
center, promised to fill in answers for students after collecting their answer
sheets, charging ₹10 lakh per student.
● People Involved: Five individuals arrested. ₹7 lakh recovered from the teacher's
car.
● Investigation Outcome: Despite requests, the National Testing Agency (NTA) did
not provide the OMR sheets of the candidates involved.
2. UGC-NET June 2024 Cancellation
● Exam Date: June 18, 2024
● Issue: The exam was canceled after inputs from the Indian Cyber Crime
Coordination Centre suggested that the exam's integrity may have been
compromised due to a leak on the Darknet.
● Investigation Outcome: The Ministry of Education canceled the exam to protect
its integrity.
