Supreme Court asks Center to respond on NEET reforms

The Supreme Court on Friday (July 24, 2026) indicated that it will closely monitor the Centre’s proposed revision of the National Eligibility Test (NEET). The court was hearing a number of petitions filed by the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA), United Doctors Front (UDF) and others seeking to replace the National Testing Agency (NTA) with an independent statutory body to conduct the examination.

A bench of Justices PS Narasimha and Alok Aradhe directed the Union government to file a detailed reply stating whether it plans to switch NEET-UG to computer-based test (CBT) and what safeguards will be put in place to protect examination data.

The bench also termed emergency measures like deployment of the Indian Air Force to transport the question papers of this year’s NEET test as temporary solutions.

“We cannot allow such a situation to continue like this. We have to focus on institutionalization… Here you have deployed the Air Force because of what happened, but that is only an ad hoc measure, not a permanent one,” the Bench observed.

The hearing came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi first addressed the NEET paper leak controversy and announced the creation of fast track courts to expedite the trial of such cases amid ongoing protests led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP).

“Walk the Extra 10 Miles”

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Union government, said the center was making all possible efforts to resolve the problems of the students.

“The government is going the extra 10 miles because children’s issues need to be addressed… I can assure you from my personal knowledge that it is being monitored, controlled and everything is done at the highest executive level,” Mr Mehta said.

The Bench then took up the reforms suggested by the seven-member Committee of High Level Experts (HLCE), set up by the Education Ministry in 2024 under former ISRO chairman K. Radhakrishnan to review the functioning of the NEET examination system. The committee, which submitted its report in October 2024, recommended a number of structural reforms, including switching to a computer-based test. The court also referred to the NTA’s affidavit describing the progress made in implementing these recommendations.

Justice Narasimha questioned the proposed switch and expressed concern over data security to prevent further paper leak cases. “Please think about that as well and tell us… How is the data transferred? How is the data protected? This is very important because if you go to this, there can be leaks, making the data unsafe. And the whole thing breaks down,” he said.

The judge ordered the center to submit an additional affidavit outlining its plan to implement the reforms detailing the proposed cybersecurity framework, the agency designated to implement it and safeguards to prevent data breaches.

“Computer aid is another thing the committee talked about… Encrypting question papers… That falls into the same category. When you digitize it, how do you secure it?” Justice Narasimha asked.

Mr. Mehta informed the court that there had been developments since the previous proceedings and that he would inform the court of the proposed measures at the next hearing.

“I have instructions to say that the government can go beyond what the committee has recommended. If the court gives me time, I will present a holistic view. There cannot be an adversarial approach with children,” Mehta said.

Advocate Tanvi Dubey, who appeared for the petitioners, said they too had proposed reforms to strengthen the examination system, including switching to a computerized format.

The bench posted the matter for further hearing on August 3

Growing concern

Earlier, Justice Narasimha had expressed grave concern over the cancellation of the exam following the paper leak allegations, describing the development as “very traumatic” for the students and their families. The court underscored the need for accountability in the face of the blunders that affected thousands of candidates and directed the Union government and the NTA to record measures taken to prevent recurrence of such incidents.

After the 2024 NEET-UG paper leak, which also saw judicial intervention by the apex court, the Center set up a seven-member committee to review the examination process and suggest remedial measures.

To implement the recommendations, the Center constituted another committee in November 2024 and also passed the Public Examinations (Prevention of Malpractice) Act, 2024.

Published – 24 Jul 2026 23:45 IST