Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Wednesday called for the immediate cancellation of NEET, saying the latest paper leak underscores “structural flaws” in the national medical admission system.
The newly elected CM’s reaction comes after the National Testing Agency’s (NTA) decision to cancel the NEET-UG 2026 exam after investigations found that the question paper had been hacked. Vijay asked the Center to allow states to return to the medical admission process based on Class 12 marks, saying the current system still disadvantages students of rural and government schools.
“This cancellation has dashed the hopes of thousands of medical aspirants,” CM Vijay said in a statement. “This is not the first time NEET has been hacked. Despite recommendations for reforms, another leak has occurred. This is evidence of flaws in the exam at the national level.”
The Tamil Nadu State Commission said the cancellation revealed “conclusive evidence” of systemic flaws in the examination at the national level.
CBI arrests 5 suspects in multi-state probe
After the exam was cancelled, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Five people were arrested in connection with the leak and the arrests were made in Jaipur, Gurugram and Nashik. Those detained include Mangilal Bewal, Vikas Bewal, Dinesh Bewal, Yash Yadav and Shubham Khairnar.
Investigators seized mobile phones and laptops for forensic analysis to determine how the paper was distributed. The agency also visited the NTA headquarters in Delhi to collect internal documents.
Investigation effects leakage into training networks
the Rajasthan’s Special Operations Group (SOG) traced the origin of the ‘guess paper’ to a medical student from Sikar who is currently studying in Kerala. According to investigators, the materials were shared through intermediaries, including hostel networks and coaching contacts, before reaching candidates in Rajasthan and neighboring districts.
During the crossing, one of the accused claimed that “big people are protected” while smaller people face arrest, PTI reported.
The exam, which was conducted on May 3 for more than 22,000 candidates, remains cancelled. The Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) has moved the Supreme Court seeking to replace the NTA with a safer body. Officials have questioned more than 150 candidates and coaching staff so far.
The political blame game is escalating
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticized the Center for the cancellation. He said the examination system had failed thousands of students and alleged that “NEET has become an auction” due to frequent incidents of paper leakage. He accused the government of negligence, saying question papers were distributed before the exam. Gandhi also said that there have been 89 paper leaks and 48 re-examinations in the last decade, describing it as a serious collapse of the examination system.
Other leaders from Congress and The Trinamool Congress claimed that some of the arrested individuals had links with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, while photos purportedly showing links with party leaders were circulated.
Former Chief Minister of Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot alleged that accused Dinesh Bewal was linked to the BJP and accused the state government of delaying the action initially. The BJP rejected the allegations, saying that he does not hold any position in the party.
Trinamool Congress MP Kirti Azad also alleged political links between the accused and BJP leaders, which intensified the standoff between the parties.
AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal also reacted, asking the young students to demand accountability citing repeated incidents of paper leakage over the years.
Rajasthan Minister Gabbar Singh Khara issued an apology for the disturbance caused to the students.
(with PTI inputs)
