MK Stalin writes, “NEET promise failed; time to trust states.”

A special session of the Tamil Nadu Assembly on 8 February 2022 “unanimously” again passed a bill seeking to waive NEET for admission to undergraduate medical courses in the state. Photo: YouTube/TN DIPR

The unprecedented student protests across the country after the NEET question paper leak is not just about one compromised examination. They reflect a deeper crisis of confidence in a system that was projected as the ultimate guardian of merit. When thousands of students lose faith in the fairness of the process that determines their future, the nation’s conscience is shaken.

Tamil Nadu was the first state to raise a red flag against NEET — not because of irregularities in its conduct, but because of the very philosophy behind a single, high-stakes national exam that decides the future of every aspiring medical student. The problem was structural, not procedural. Recent events have confirmed this fear.

Published – 23 Jul 2026 01:32 IST