On Wednesday, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Health Minister JP Nadda attended a meeting called by the Home Minister in which they briefed him on the FIRs lodged in Bihar & Gujarat, and their position on allegations of irregularities, paper leaks pertaining to the conduct of the medical entrance test
As the Opposition and the Centre face off over NEET-UG with the Congress calling for nationwide protests on June 21, the issue reached the highest levels of the government with Union Home Minister Amit Shah calling a meeting with Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Health Minister J P Nadda on Thursday.
In the meeting, attended also by a representative from the Prime Minister’s Office, Shah heard out the positions of stakeholders, including the National Testing Agency, over the allegations of irregularities and a paper leak, a source told The Indian Express.
The meeting at Shah’s residence lasted over an hour, during which he was briefed on all FIRs registered related to the NEET-UG exam, particularly in Bihar.
Bihar has set up a special investigation team (SIT) of its economic offences unit (EOU) to probe the paper leak allegations. That apart two exam centres in Godhra, Gujarat, are under the scanner for helping in filing the right choices in their OMR sheets. The Panchmahal district police in Gujarat has arrested five persons so far in the case of alleged malpractices in the test at Parvadi village in Godhra.
The Bihar SIT’s investigation so far is “suggestive of a paper leak”. Of the 13 people arrested in the state, four are candidates who took the NEET, three parents and others who are members of a gang that allegedly gathered 35 candidates before the exam at a school and conducted a mock exam. They allegedly received the NEET question paper along with answers.
“In the matter pertaining to the NEET(UG) Examination-2024, the issue related to grace marks has already been fully addressed. As regards certain irregularities alleged in the conduct of the examination in Patna, a detailed report has been sought from the Economic Offences Unit, Bihar Police. Government will take further action, on receipt of this report,” it said.
“Government is committed to ensure the sanctity of examinations and protect the interest of students. It is reiterated that any individual/organization found to be involved in this matter will face strictest action,” the ministry said.
In the meeting earlier in the day, the Home Minister is learned to have been apprised of the NTA’s analysis of the results of the candidates at centres in Patna and Godhra, which the Bihar and Gujarat Police, respectively, suspect of having benefited from irregularities. As reported by The Indian Express on Wednesday, NTA’s analysis shows the candidates under suspicion do not appear to have had any unusual advantage.
Of the 13 candidates from Patna, who are under Bihar Police scanner in their investigation of an alleged paper leak, eight have scored less than 500 marks out of 720, The Indian Express has learnt. Almost 98% of the students who appeared from two exam centres in Godhra, being probed for manipulation of OMR sheets, have also scored less than 500 marks.
