The Supreme Court, on Monday (May 25, 2026), squarely blamed the National Testing Agency (NTA) for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Undergraduate (NEET-UG) 2026 paper leak, saying the exam body sadly did not learn its lesson even two years after the last security breach in 2024.

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The hard work of 23 lakh students came to nothing after it was learnt that the question paper for the NEET-UG 2026 was leaked. The exam was cancelled, and a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation was ordered. A re-test is scheduled for June 21, 2026.

A repeat of 2024?

For the Supreme Court, the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak was a repetition of what happened in 2024, which had similarly put the careers and future of over 20 lakh students in jeopardy. The court had, at the time, taken cognisance of the fiasco and heard petitioners over many days, and decided not to cancel the 2024 exam, reasoning that the leak was localised.

However, the apex court had acknowledged the need to reform the exam process and make it foolproof. It had directed the constitution of a committee headed by former ISRO chairman K. Radhakrishnan to recommend changes in the way NTA conducted the crucial annual exam for medical admissions across the country.

“It is so sad, really, that the NTA has not learnt its lesson. We had with such difficulty heard the petitions in 2024 and passed orders… We had directed the constitution of a committee to give recommendations… Those recommendations, we believe were accepted… a monitoring/high-powered committee was appointed,” Justice P.S. Narasimha, heading a two-judge Bench, observed.

The court was hearing a petition filed by the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) to “replace or fundamentally restructure” the NTA.

A second petition by the United Doctors Front was also heard seeking the transition of the NTA from a registered society to a statutory body established by an Act of Parliament to ensure constitutional and parliamentary accountability. The doctors’ body said the 2026 paper leak was part of a “recurring, systemic, and catastrophic failure” of the NTA in conducting the NEET-UG exam.

The Bench issued notice on the petitions to the Union of India, the Ministry of Education, the NTA, and other respondents arraigned by the petitioners.

The court directed the NTA to file an affidavit in the next three days on the measures it had taken to implement the recommendations of the monitoring/high-powered committee, including a shift to a computer-based test (CBT) mechanism. Mr. Radhakrishnan has also been asked to file a separate affidavit within the same time period on the steps that were taken to ensure that the committee recommendations were followed. The Court listed the case for hearing on an urgent basis later this week.

The petitions have sought sweeping directions by the Government to mandate “digital locking” of question papers and a transition to the CBT model to eliminate the physical chain-of-custody risks.

The doctors’ body pointed out that unlike the Union Public Service Commission or the Staff Selection, the NTA was not directly answerable to the Parliament. It operated under the Ministry of Education, shielding it from direct CAG audits and mandatory Parliamentary committee probes.

“The recurrence proves that cosmetic administrative tweaks and expert committees like the K. Radhakrishnan Committee is inadequate without a fundamental legislative overhaul,” the petition has contended.

The doctors’ front sought the dissolution of the NTA in its current form and the enactment of a Parliamentary Act to create a new testing authority.