The biggest, still unfolding medico-legal case in India is NEET. And only a surgical solution by the Supreme Court can restore public trust and confidence in the NEET system, which has never been so compromised before.
Surgery is needed because the apex court is dealing with a tumour and not a growth. Consider this unusual jump in the number of high scorers this year compared to last year. As against just two centurions last year, there are 67 candidates with a perfect score of 720 in 2024. There are 1,770 candidates scoring 700 or above this year. In 2023, their number was just 294. Those scoring above 650 were just 6,803 in 2023, but there were 21,724 in the 2024 edition. Those scoring 600 marks in 2023 rose to 80,468 as against 28,629 in 2023.
Let us stop at 600/720 as all MBBS seats in government and aided colleges and most of the management quota seats in top and mid-range private colleges end at 80,468.
The discussions have centred on the 67 candidates who scored 720 marks and a few more who scored impossible marks of 719 and 718, but what needs real investigation is the unusual number of top scorers who have not come under the radar so far. If someone wants to get admission in a government medical college, where the annual tuition fee is not even Rs 20,000, it does not matter whether he scores 720 marks or 700. A smart criminal would have chosen the latter option, as it would not attract any scrutiny.
This ‘increase’ in top scorers from 2023 to 2024 is not organic or healthy. Far from it. It is a tumour. Cancelling the 2024 edition of NEET alone is the answer and is the surgical remedy the Supreme Court must resort to if it wants to deliver full justice to the over 23 lakh students who wrote NEET this year.
There are at least three other reasons why the results of this version of the exam cannot be upheld.
‘Grace Icon’
This year’s prospectus did not have any provision for giving ‘grace marks’ to students who either lost time or faced disruptions while taking the exam. In the absence of a provision for grace marks, it is no surprise that many did not even bother to protest despite facing such disruptions. A centre in Tamil Nadu’s Trichy district is an example of this. Barring a token protest, the wards and their parents did not think of informing the National Testing Agency (NTA) about the disruption, as there was no such provision in the prospectus.
But 1,563 candidates in several other states did not think so. They cited this non-existent provision, took it to court, got some orders and then got ‘grace marks’ from the NTA. Thanks to these grace marks, 44 students got a perfect score of 720, while two others got impossible scores of 719 and 718.
Why is this impossible?
The NEET paper has three sections and carries 180 questions carrying four marks each. There is a negative mark of 1 for every wrong answer. So, while the first mark can be 720, the second cannot be 719 or 718. It can only be 716 if the candidate did not attempt a question, or 715 if he attempted it and got it wrong. So, only God knows what ‘grace’ marks helped these candidates score the impossible 718 and 719 marks.
The NTA cited a 2018 Supreme Court judgment to cover up the ‘grace marks’ scam, but forgot to mention that the Supreme Court order was for the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT), a computer-based exam prone to technical glitches and power fluctuations. Also, it is not known whether the NTA awarded grace marks between 2018 and 2024, when it was busted.
Question paper leak
The investigation by the Bihar police and now the CBI has so far spread to at least seven states. In Patna alone, the state police have arrested 13 people. The CBI has arrested two people, while several others are absconding. The investigation has revealed a network spread across the northern region from Bihar to Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. All these are traditionally ‘high scoring’ states, producing top ranked MBBS candidates.
center-shopping
A major sin in the judiciary is forum shopping, where litigants and their lawyers secure undeserved relief by choosing a judge, bench or tribunal. The courts have never hesitated to root out such a practice and punish all those involved.
In the 2024 edition of NEET, many students from other states had taken the exam at a particular school in Godhra, Gujarat. How? While applying, candidates can choose only one state or city of their choice. But the exam centre is decided only by the NTA. So, without the help of an insider, these students cannot have landed at the Godhra school centre. If an insider had indeed helped the scamsters to rig the centre-allocation process, this could be the worst thing that could happen to NEET. How these students got the Godhra centre is worth investigating from this angle, as it would go far beyond the suspected coaching centre-school owner nexus.
The NTA has let down the Central government, which has now replaced the top officials of the NTA. The new team has immediately postponed the NEET-PG and other exams, besides ordering an inquiry. The government did what it could and the NTA is very new. Therefore, the Supreme Court is in the best position to do what needs to be done to restore public confidence and provide justice to the 23 lakh NEET candidates who feel cheated.
Email your feedback
Send it with name and address to southpole.toi@timesgroup.com
Surgery is needed because the apex court is dealing with a tumour and not a growth. Consider this unusual jump in the number of high scorers this year compared to last year. As against just two centurions last year, there are 67 candidates with a perfect score of 720 in 2024. There are 1,770 candidates scoring 700 or above this year. In 2023, their number was just 294. Those scoring above 650 were just 6,803 in 2023, but there were 21,724 in the 2024 edition. Those scoring 600 marks in 2023 rose to 80,468 as against 28,629 in 2023.
Let us stop at 600/720 as all MBBS seats in government and aided colleges and most of the management quota seats in top and mid-range private colleges end at 80,468.
The discussions have centred on the 67 candidates who scored 720 marks and a few more who scored impossible marks of 719 and 718, but what needs real investigation is the unusual number of top scorers who have not come under the radar so far. If someone wants to get admission in a government medical college, where the annual tuition fee is not even Rs 20,000, it does not matter whether he scores 720 marks or 700. A smart criminal would have chosen the latter option, as it would not attract any scrutiny.
This ‘increase’ in top scorers from 2023 to 2024 is not organic or healthy. Far from it. It is a tumour. Cancelling the 2024 edition of NEET alone is the answer and is the surgical remedy the Supreme Court must resort to if it wants to deliver full justice to the over 23 lakh students who wrote NEET this year.
There are at least three other reasons why the results of this version of the exam cannot be upheld.
‘Grace Icon’
This year’s prospectus did not have any provision for giving ‘grace marks’ to students who either lost time or faced disruptions while taking the exam. In the absence of a provision for grace marks, it is no surprise that many did not even bother to protest despite facing such disruptions. A centre in Tamil Nadu’s Trichy district is an example of this. Barring a token protest, the wards and their parents did not think of informing the National Testing Agency (NTA) about the disruption, as there was no such provision in the prospectus.
But 1,563 candidates in several other states did not think so. They cited this non-existent provision, took it to court, got some orders and then got ‘grace marks’ from the NTA. Thanks to these grace marks, 44 students got a perfect score of 720, while two others got impossible scores of 719 and 718.
Why is this impossible?
The NEET paper has three sections and carries 180 questions carrying four marks each. There is a negative mark of 1 for every wrong answer. So, while the first mark can be 720, the second cannot be 719 or 718. It can only be 716 if the candidate did not attempt a question, or 715 if he attempted it and got it wrong. So, only God knows what ‘grace’ marks helped these candidates score the impossible 718 and 719 marks.
The NTA cited a 2018 Supreme Court judgment to cover up the ‘grace marks’ scam, but forgot to mention that the Supreme Court order was for the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT), a computer-based exam prone to technical glitches and power fluctuations. Also, it is not known whether the NTA awarded grace marks between 2018 and 2024, when it was busted.
Question paper leak
The investigation by the Bihar police and now the CBI has so far spread to at least seven states. In Patna alone, the state police have arrested 13 people. The CBI has arrested two people, while several others are absconding. The investigation has revealed a network spread across the northern region from Bihar to Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. All these are traditionally ‘high scoring’ states, producing top ranked MBBS candidates.
center-shopping
A major sin in the judiciary is forum shopping, where litigants and their lawyers secure undeserved relief by choosing a judge, bench or tribunal. The courts have never hesitated to root out such a practice and punish all those involved.
In the 2024 edition of NEET, many students from other states had taken the exam at a particular school in Godhra, Gujarat. How? While applying, candidates can choose only one state or city of their choice. But the exam centre is decided only by the NTA. So, without the help of an insider, these students cannot have landed at the Godhra school centre. If an insider had indeed helped the scamsters to rig the centre-allocation process, this could be the worst thing that could happen to NEET. How these students got the Godhra centre is worth investigating from this angle, as it would go far beyond the suspected coaching centre-school owner nexus.
The NTA has let down the Central government, which has now replaced the top officials of the NTA. The new team has immediately postponed the NEET-PG and other exams, besides ordering an inquiry. The government did what it could and the NTA is very new. Therefore, the Supreme Court is in the best position to do what needs to be done to restore public confidence and provide justice to the 23 lakh NEET candidates who feel cheated.
Email your feedback
Send it with name and address to southpole.toi@timesgroup.com
