NEET 2026 ‘paper leak’: 120 questions from a guess paper, what Rahul Gandhi alleges, what probe says so far | Explained

India’s largest undergraduate medical entrance examination — NEET UG 2026 — is on the centre of a controversy over alleged irregularities, lower than two years after the NEET UG 2024 scandal that triggered nationwide protests, Supreme Courtroom hearings, and a CBI investigation.

With simply over 1 lakh MBBS seats out there towards over 22 lakh candidates, a distinction of a few marks determines whether or not a pupil secures a authorities faculty seat, pays crores at a personal faculty, or will get no seat in any respect.

Right here is the whole lot you’ll want to know.

This yr, 22.79 lakh college students appeared for it. The examination was held on Could 3, 2026, from 2 to five pm, in pen-and-paper mode, throughout 551 cities in India and 14 cities overseas, protecting greater than 5,400 centres.

The SOG confirmed it’s analyzing a doc containing roughly 410 questions. SOG Further Director Normal Vishal Bansal said that over 100 questions from the Biology and Chemistry sections mixed confirmed “putting similarities” to the precise examination paper, with roughly 120 alleged matches throughout these two topics.

Individually, sources linked to the probe advised media shops that the similarities may account for practically 600 of the 720 whole marks.

Bansal stated the doc had reportedly been circulating amongst college students “as early as 15 days to a month” earlier than the examination. A report in information company PTI, citing police sources, stated the circulation may have began 42 hours earlier than the examination by way of WhatsApp.

From there, a paying visitor lodging proprietor reportedly distributed it to college students on the facility, after which it unfold via teaching networks and messaging apps.

Recovered chat histories reportedly carried the “forwarded many instances” label.

The fabric was reportedly bought for as a lot as ₹5 lakh two days earlier than the examination, with the value falling to round ₹30,000 on the eve of the take a look at, sources within the investigation staff advised information companies.

As of Could 11, 13 suspects have been detained from Dehradun in Uttarakhand, and Sikar and Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan.

Bansal described the fabric as a “guess paper” or take a look at sequence and stated the investigation is concentrated on figuring out whether or not any “dishonest or prison exercise” occurred.

The NTA referred solely to “alleged malpractice exercise” and “alleged irregularities”. The phrase “leak” seems in political statements and public discourse, however has not been utilized by investigating or analyzing authorities.

The NTA issued a assertion saying the examination was carried out underneath full safety protocol. It stated query papers have been transported in GPS-tracked autos with distinctive watermark identifiers, examination halls have been monitored via AI-assisted CCTV surveillance, biometric verification of each candidate was carried out, and 5G sign jammers have been deployed in any respect centres.

The NTA stated it acquired inputs concerning alleged “malpractice” on Could 7 — 4 days after the examination, and escalated the matter to central companies on Could 8 for unbiased verification.

It stated it “is not going to pre-judge the inquiry, nor characterise its seemingly consequence” and confirmed it’s offering examination information and technical help to investigating companies.

He alleged that in 10 years there had been 89 paper leaks and 48 re-exams throughout numerous aggressive examinations, and stated “nobody poses a better risk to the goals of India’s youth than the (Narendra) Modi authorities.”

His determine of “89 paper leaks in 10 years” refers to leaks throughout a number of aggressive examinations in India, not NEET alone.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge individually said that no less than 4 NEET papers have been compromised — in 2026, 2024, 2021, and 2016. Congress common secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra requested what use the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act — handed in 2024 — has been if irregularities proceed.

An unprecedented 67 college students scored a excellent 720/720. Grace marks awarded to 1,563 college students have been subsequently cancelled by the Supreme Courtroom. The NTA initially denied irregularities. Its chief was finally changed and a evaluation committee was arrange.

This yr’s NTA chief, Abhishek Singh, was appointed after the 2024 controversy and had introduced a “zero-error, zero-tolerance” method, overseeing the safety measures deployed in 2026.