In the wake of the NEET-UG 2024 exams, a major controversy has erupted over the fairness and accuracy of the process. The National Testing Agency (NTA) announced the results on June 4, but numerous complaints and legal petitions have surfaced challenging different aspects of the examination.
One of the most troubling cases comes from Hardayal Public School in Bahadurgarh, Haryana. Here, students were given grace marks for lost time during the exam due to administrative errors. An exclusive interview with a parent revealed serious problems that have raised questions about the exam’s fairness.
Anil Ahlawat, father of NEET aspirant Ritesh, spoke to Business Today, detailing what went wrong at the exam center on May 5. The core issue was the mishandling of the question papers. Students were supposed to receive the QRST paper, but instead, they got the MNOP backup paper due to a mistake.
“The school handed out two sets of papers: QRST and MNOP. The QRST was the primary paper, but they accidentally gave out the MNOP paper,” Mr. Ahlawat explained. This led to confusion and wasted time.
“Half an hour into the exam, the authorities realized the mistake and took back the wrong paper. However, they also took the primary QRST paper by mistake, causing more time loss. Despite this, the exam ended at the scheduled time without extra time given to the students to make up for the lost time,” he added.
This mistake had serious consequences. Students completed the wrong paper, thinking it was the right one. Parents and students immediately raised concerns about fairness, leading to legal action.
“We filed a petition in the Delhi High Court, arguing that the wrong paper distribution violated equality under Section 14 of the Indian Constitution,” Mr. Ahlawat said. They asked for a reevaluation or a re-examination, citing the right to a fair exam process.
A similar issue happened in Sawai Madhavpur, Rajasthan, where students got papers meant for a different language. However, the administration corrected the mistake and re-conducted the exam the same day at 6 PM.
“By 5:20 PM, all students had finished their exam, and then they re-conducted the same paper in the city later. Technically, this means the paper was leaked,” Mr. Ahlawat claimed.
This and other discrepancies led to claims of a leaked exam paper, though the NTA strongly denied these allegations. The controversy grew with reports of students receiving grace marks to make up for lost time. These adjustments were part of NTA’s efforts to fix the problems faced by students at various centers.
In response, several petitions have been filed in courts across the country, demanding a fair resolution and accountability from the NTA. These legal actions followed concerns about unexpectedly high scores, including 67 candidates scoring a perfect 720 out of 720, raising doubts about the exam’s integrity.
The latest government decision states that all scorecards for students who received grace marks have been canceled. These students can either retake the exam on June 23 or have their new scorecards generated based on a new marking scheme.
