The NTA conducted the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination on June 21 after the original test was cancelled over allegations of irregularities.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the National Testing Agency's (NTA) decision to cancel the original NEET-UG 2026 examination and conduct a nationwide retest, observing that the issue had become infructuous as the fresh examination had already been held.
A Bench comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha and Alok Aradhe told the petitioner's counsel that there was no reason to examine the plea since the re-examination had already taken place.
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When the petitioner's counsel submitted that the PIL also sought institutional and structural reforms in the functioning of the NTA and requested that it be tagged with other pending petitions, the Bench orally observed that the petitioner was free to intervene in the batch of cases already seeking reforms in the examination-conducting body's functioning.
The PIL was filed by former Assistant Director General of Health Services Dr Mangala Kohli through Advocate-on-Record Abhishek Chandra Mishra. It had challenged the NTA's decision to cancel the NEET-UG 2026 examination held on May 3 and order a fresh nationwide test following allegations of paper leaks and examination malpractice.
The plea argued that while any instances of examination fraud should be thoroughly investigated and those responsible held accountable, lakhs of genuine candidates should not be made to suffer due to administrative failures on the part of the examination authority.
It further contended that investigations by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) pointed to localised breaches involving organised networks rather than evidence of compromise across the entire examination process. According to the petition, cancelling the examination had forced around 22 lakh candidates, many of whom had no connection with the alleged malpractice, to appear for another highly competitive examination, resulting in academic disruption, mental stress and financial hardship.
Apart from seeking to quash the decision to hold the retest, the petition also sought structural and technological reforms in the conduct of national-level examinations. These included independent oversight mechanisms, stronger security safeguards, encrypted digital question delivery, biometric authentication and AI-assisted monitoring.
Earlier, on June 17, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant had declined to grant an urgent hearing on the plea, noting that matters relating to NEET-UG 2026 were already being heard by a Bench led by Justice P.S. Narasimha. He had directed that the PIL be listed before the same Bench.
The NTA conducted the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination on June 21 after the original test was cancelled over allegations of irregularities. More than 20 lakh candidates appeared at 5,440 centres across India and 14 centres overseas.
The examination was held under heightened security arrangements, including Aadhaar-based biometric verification, facial authentication, two-layer frisking, CCTV surveillance, signal jammers and real-time monitoring through command-and-control centres, aimed at ensuring the integrity of the examination process.
(IANS)
Published: 15 Jul 2026, 03:44 pm IST
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