New Delhi, 18 July

Any order for conducting the NEET-UG 2024 afresh has to be on concrete basis that the sanctity of the entire exam was affected, the Supreme Court said on Thursday.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwla and Manoj Misra commenced the crucial hearing on a batch of petitions related to the controversy-ridden medical entrance exam NEET-UG 2024, saying that it has "social ramifications".

The top court adjourned the cases listed ahead of the NEET-UG pleas and said, "We will open the case today (on Thursday). Lakhs of young students are waiting for this, let us hear and decide."

The bench asked the petitioners seeking cancellation, re-test and a court-monitored probe into the alleged irregularities in the 5 May exam to show that the paper leak was "systemic" and affected the entire examination, warranting cancellation. "Re-examination has to be on concrete footing that the sanctity of the entire test was affected," the CJI said.

On the issue of the ongoing probe, the bench said, "The CBI probe is on. If what the CBI has told us is revealed, it will affect the investigation and people will become wise." The hearing is underway.

The bench is hearing more than 40 pleas, including those filed by the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts NEET-UG, seeking transfer of cases pending against it in various high courts regarding the alleged irregularities in the exam to the Supreme Court to avoid multiplicity of litigations.

On 11 July, the top court had adjourned till 18 July the hearing on the pleas, including those seeking cancellation of NEET-UG 2024, re-test and a probe into alleged malpractices, as the responses of the Centre and the NTA were yet to be received by some parties.

More than 23.33 lakh students had taken the test on 5 May at 4,750 centres in 571 cities, including 14 overseas. In their affidavits filed earlier in the apex court, the Centre and the NTA had said that scrapping the exam would be "counterproductive" and "seriously jeopardise" lakhs of honest candidates in the absence of any proof of large-scale breach of confidentiality.

The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) is conducted by the NTA for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and other related courses in government and private institutions across the country.