Supreme Court Rejects Petition Challenging Two NEET-UG Questions.
The Supreme Court rejected a petition that challenged the Delhi High Court’s decision not to label two questions in this year’s NEET-UG as incorrect and to award bonus marks. The Court was reviewing a Special Leave Petition against the Delhi High Court’s ruling from August 1, 2024, which had dismissed a Writ Petition from a candidate of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate) 2024. The High Court noted that experts had evaluated the disputed questions, the results had been announced, and the counseling schedule could not be altered at that point. A Bench led by Chief Justice of India Dr. D.Y. Chandrachud, along with Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, declined to consider the appeal against the High Court’s ruling, stating, “We cannot disrupt the entire process.” The Chief Justice explained, “If you are correct, the whole exam result would need to be redone. What about the students who have already been admitted? The admissions are finalized. We cannot interfere in this matter. Thank you. Dismissed.” The petitioner had claimed that the National Testing Agency’s (NTA) failure to declare questions 104 and 149 of the R4 test booklet as incorrect and to provide bonus marks was “arbitrary, discriminatory, unjust, unethical, and a violation of fundamental rights.” The Court noted that the NTA had consulted subject experts after receiving objections, emphasizing that it “cannot act as an appellate authority over the experts’ decisions on the correct answers.”
On July 23, 2024, the Supreme Court decided not to cancel the NEET-UG 2024 exam. They stated there wasn’t enough evidence to prove that the results were flawed or that the exam’s integrity was compromised. The Court mentioned that calling for a retest would be unfair. They also noted that any student with ongoing concerns could seek legal remedies.
Cause Title: Nandita v. National Testing Agency [SLP(C) 21138-21139 of 2024]
