The Supreme Court on Friday stressed the need for structural and institutional reforms in the conduct of national examinations while hearing petitions against the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak. The Court directed the Union Government to file an affidavit detailing how future examinations would be conducted and what measures would be put in place to prevent a recurrence of the controversies witnessed in 2024 and 2026.
A Bench of Justice P.S. Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe examined affidavits filed by Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, who headed the High-Powered Committee (HPC) constituted after the 2024 controversy, and officials of the National Testing Agency (NTA). Dr. Radhakrishnan informed the Court that the committee had made around 60 recommendations, most of which had already been implemented. He also reminded the Court how the 2025 NEET-UG examination had been conducted successfully.
The Court, however, questioned how the present incident could have occurred despite the committee’s recommendations and monitoring mechanisms. “Despite your monitoring on the basis of HPC recommendation, if this incident has happened, then there would be a problem with the recommendation. Or the monitoring may not have happened,” the Bench observed.
Emphasising accountability, the Court remarked that reforms would not succeed unless responsibility was clearly fixed. The Bench observed:
“
“The real problem won’t stop till actual accountability arises. It will be effective when we know which individual shoulders the responsibility lies. Unless you identify the duty holders it will be a diffused obligation.”
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta submitted that new safeguards had been introduced and informed the Court that the Prime Minister was “personally supervising” the issue. The Court nevertheless stressed the importance of institutional continuity:
“
“The problem with most of our institutions is adhocism. The knowledge doesn’t percolate. It is not the individual who has the capability. It is the institution.”
The Bench directed the Union Government to place on record a roadmap explaining how institutional memory, continuity of human resources and expert participation would be embedded into the examination system. The Court said the objective was to ensure that the NTA possesses the necessary physical, intellectual and institutional capacity “to ensure that no incident such as 2024/2026 examination occur.”
The Court also suggested that the NTA consider sustained collaboration with academic institutions and domain experts, noting that ideas, methodologies and technologies evolve continuously. Referring to emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, the Bench observed that a full-time expert body could help the agency keep pace with changing challenges. Expressing concern for students and their families, the Court remarked:
“
“It is very traumatic if this is happening. We cannot disappoint our students. It is not merely the student, it’s the family too. It is so much of emotions, love, time, years of study.”
The matter has been directed to be listed in the second week of July after the Union files its affidavit on the future course of action.