The cancellation of the National Eligibility Test with Entrance Test (Undergraduate) NEET (UG) 2026 has sparked anger and anxiety among Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) aspirants across the country, with students questioning the working of the National Testing Agency (NTA) and lamenting the uncertainty caused by another paper leak controversy.
NTA on Tuesday announced that it has canceled the NEET (UG) 2026 examination conducted on May 3 and will reconduct the National Level Medical Entrance Test on dates to be notified separately.
In a five-point statement, the agency said the decision was made after receiving input, along with findings shared by law enforcement agencies, which demonstrated that the current vetting process “cannot be allowed to stand.”
The announcement has left thousands of aspirants frustrated, especially those who performed well in the canceled exam.
Abhishek Verma, a student from Lucknow, said he was expecting to get a high score based on the provisional answer key released by NTA on May 6, and was hoping to get admission in the government medical college.
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“Based on the provisional answer keys, I was getting 620 marks out of 720 and was going to get admission in the government medical college to study MBBS. Now I have to study again for the exam and get similar or higher marks as the paper might be more difficult than the one conducted on May 3,” he said.
Describing the development as “discouraging”, Verma said that resuming the intense preparation course would be mentally exhausting.
“The last month of preparation is very difficult. We have to remain consistent and study with full dedication to give our best in those three hours. It is not certain that I will be able to perform well again because my mental state was affected by the paper leak controversy,” he said.
Verma said he scored over 640 marks in NEET 2024 but was unable to secure admission due to high dropout rates following the controversy that year.
“There is no justification for canceling the examination because hardworking students like us will suffer through no fault of ours. NTA and other agencies must reform the accountability of their officials so that we do not suffer from injustice,” he added.
Shashank Maurya, another student from Lucknow, said the cancellation had added to the distress of serious candidates who had repeatedly appeared in the highly competitive examination.
“It was my fifth attempt for NEET. Despite scoring good enough to get into a government medical college, students like me often lose out because gangs help others get papers in advance, enabling them to secure seats unfairly.”
“Retaking the exam could weed out the candidates involved in the alleged leak of the paper this year, but it will create problems for students like me who have to study again with full concentration without any guarantee that we will be able to get similar grades. The paper may also be more difficult this time,” he said.
Earlier on Monday, the Special Operations Group (SOG) of Rajasthan Police launched a probe into allegations of leaked questions in NEET-UG 2026, days after receiving intelligence about a question bank circulating online containing at least 120 questions from chemistry and biology also appearing in the exam, officers said.
A guess sheet is a document that lists possible questions for upcoming tests. They are generally created by experts or teachers, based on patterns of question trends and frequencies.
Read also: NEET, Not So Elegant: How the Entrance to the Highly Desired Medical Profession Loses Confidence Year After Year
The NEET-UG standard question paper contains 180 compulsory multiple choice questions for a total of 720 marks, with 90 questions from Biology (45 questions each from Botany and Zoology) and 45 questions from Physics and Chemistry. Each correct answer carries four marks, while one mark is deducted for each incorrect answer. Unattempted questions do not carry any marks. The test is taken in offline mode and candidates are given three hours to complete it.
The Union government has decided to refer the matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for a thorough investigation into the allegations, NTA said on Tuesday. The agency added that the new exam dates and the schedule for reissuing admission cards will be announced through its official channels in the coming days. Data of registration, nomination and examination centers selected for the May 2026 session will be transferred to the reconducted examination, according to the NTA.
NEET (UG), conducted annually using pen-and-paper mode by NTA, is the single largest entrance exam for admission to undergraduate medical courses across India. More than 2.2 million students have appeared for NEET-UG 2026.
