NEW DELHI: The National Testing Agency (NTA), in its reply filed before the top court, denied the allegations by the petitioners that there was a systemic failure and widespread irregularities in conducting the exam.
"The allegations of the petitioners that there has been a systemic failure as candidates have obtained unprecedented higher marks only in the top range of mark interval are misconceived,” the agency that conducts the NEET-UG exam submitted to the apex court, on Wednesday.
The three-judge bench, led by CJI D Y Chandrachud, who is conducting the hearing, on Thursday was apprised by the NTA, that the CBI filed a second status report regarding the ongoing investigation into the alleged NEET-UG paper leak and malpractices.
During the hearing on Thursday, the NTA said that the exam centre allotment was only two days before the exam. So nobody knows which centre is going to be allotted to which student.
The apex court also observed that an investigation is going on and if what the CBI told the court is revealed, it will affect the investigation. The court wanted to know from the candidates (petitioners) and asked them to show that the paper leak was so systemic and affected the entire examination to warrant the cancellation of the entire exam.
Appearing for some of the petitioners, senior lawyer Narinde Hooda, tried to make a case for his clients that the NEET-UG exam conducted, with full of irregularities. He said that the NTA and Govt are attributing two reasons for the exponential inflation in marks - one, there was a reduction of syllabus; two, increase in candidature.
"Inflation of marks is admitted, the leak is admitted," Hooda told the top court.
The NTA also submitted to the Supreme Court with respect to the top hundred ranks in the NEET-UG 2024 exam and which cities they come from, as the CJI-led bench wanted to know this.
After going through the report of the NTA, the CJI said that the top hundred ranks were from many states, seven ranks each from AP, Bihar, Gujarat, four from Haryana, three from Delhi, six from Karnataka, five from Kerala, Maharashtra, TN and WB and six from UP. So it appeared that the spread in the top hundred marks is distributed across the country, in 12 states and one UT.
Adding to this fact, the Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, for NTA and Centre, said that the first 100 rankers are spread across 95 centres located in 56 cities within 18 States/UTs.
The arguments were inconclusive and continued post-lunch before the same bench of judges in the case.
The Supreme Court was hearing a batch of petitions on Thursday filed by students who have appeared in the NEET-UG and have sought re-test and proper investigation into the alleged paper leak.