The Supreme Court on Friday, 29 May 2026, sharply criticised the National Testing Agency over the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak, drawing a pointed comparison with the Union Public Service Commission and raising serious questions about institutional accountability within the examination body. The bench observed that the problems plaguing the NTA would continue to recur unless specific individuals were identified as duty bearers and held responsible. The court stressed the urgent need to build an "institutional memory of continuity" within the agency, with specialised permanent personnel capable of conducting large-scale national examinations without controversy.
The bench questioned how the paper leak could have occurred despite a monitoring committee being constituted after the 2024 NEET controversy, with recommendations already accepted and a compliance mechanism in place. The court noted that the leak represented a lapse in the monitoring process itself and not merely an administrative failure at the ground level. It asked the Union of India to file an affidavit explaining how institutional continuity could be established through the employment of specialised personnel so that the NTA would have both the physical and intellectual capacity to conduct future examinations without any blemish.
The Supreme Court took on record affidavits filed by the NTA and the monitoring committee chairman, while granting the Centre additional time to submit its own response. No final order was passed during the hearing. The matter is expected to be listed again for further directions once all affidavits are placed before the bench.
The hearing was conducted by a bench comprising Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe. Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, former Chairman of ISRO and head of the court-mandated monitoring committee, appeared before the bench and stated that the committee had submitted 35 core recommendations and 60 short-term directives, most of which had been implemented. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appeared for the Centre and the NTA, assuring the court that the government was treating the matter with utmost seriousness as it directly affected the country's youth. The petitions were filed by the Federation of All India Medical Association and the United Doctors Front, both seeking the dissolution or comprehensive restructuring of the NTA.
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