CPI MP P. Sandosh Kumar slams govt over NEET-UG 2026 fiasco

New Delhi, May 12 Communist Party of India (CPI) Rajya Sabha MP, P. Sandosh Kumar, on Tuesday condemned the Union government and the National Testing Agency (NTA) over the cancellation of the NEET UG 2026 examination due to a paper leak.

Sandosh Kumar said that the development has pushed lakhs of students into uncertainty and distress.

"The repeated paper leaks, exam scams and cancellations have completely exposed the collapse of the examination system under this regime. Students who prepared with immense hardship and hope are being made victims of corruption, incompetence and a deeply discriminatory system," he added.

The CPI leader said, "The Narendra Modi government has repeatedly trampled upon the aspirations of students while promoting a centralised structure that benefits coaching centres and the privileged at the cost of poor, rural and marginalised students. NEET has failed both socially and institutionally."

Demanding urgent corrective measures, he added, "NEET and the NTA must be scrapped. The examination system should be decentralised in a democratic and transparent manner that respects social justice and the rights of states."

"A Supreme Court-monitored probe must be instituted and all those guilty of playing with the future of lakhs of students must be given exemplary punishment," he said.

Earlier, the Congress alleged corruption in the NEET UG 2026 and demanded the cancellation of the exam and criticised the Union government for the paper leak.

Congress MP and party's General Secretary Communications In-charge Jairam Ramesh said the recent paper leak of the NEET-UG 2026 and the subsequent cancellation of the exam is only the latest in a series of instances which throw a question mark on the purpose and efficacy of the NTA.

"The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports in its 371th report had noted that in 2024 alone, of the 14 national examinations conducted by the NTA, five saw paper leaks and irregularities," Ramesh added.

"In JEE Mains 2025, 12 questions in the paper had to be withdrawn due to errors in the answer key. In the CUET that the Modi Government has imposed on universities for admissions, the conduct of the examinations and the release of the results is routinely delayed -- an issue which has thrown academic calendars of all educational institutions into utter chaos," he said.

The Congress MP added, "This issue has completely disrupted the academic calendars of all educational institutions and pushed students toward private universities that offer more predictable and timely admission processes."

He said the Committee had also noted that the NTA has consistently failed to provide an annual report to the Parliament, only providing audited statements.

The Congress MP added, "The Modi Government has destroyed decades-old admissions practices and examinations, replaced it with a centralised body rife with corruption, and ensured that it remains beyond accountability to the Parliament."

Ramesh said that on June 16, 2024, the Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had acknowledged that the NTA 'needs a lot of improvement'.

"Two years later, one must wonder what follow-up action has occurred on this admission. It is increasingly clear that what is needed is not just improvement, but a fundamental restructuring of the NTA and its ecosystem so that it is kept out of the hands of the Modi Government's corrupt henchmen," he added.

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