New Delhi, India – India’s premier exams for entrance into medical and research programs face intense scrutiny amid corruption and paper leak scandals, jeopardizing the future of over three million students.

The National Testing Agency (NTA), an autonomous body under India’s Ministry of Education responsible for conducting these tests, is embroiled in controversies regarding the integrity of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), held last month for medical candidates.

The June 4th exam results exposed irregularities in scores and an unusually high number of toppers, leading to numerous arrests for alleged paper leaks and multi-million dollar cheating scams.

Since then, many students have taken their grievances to the Supreme Court and state high courts, held protests under extreme heat, and launched social media campaigns demanding independent investigations and a re-examination. Around 2.4 million candidates sat for NEET, vying for 100,000 seats in medical schools.

On June 19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s new coalition government canceled the National Eligibility Test (NET), which grants public-funded research fellowships, just a day after a million students wrote the exam. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan reported that questions had been leaked on the darknet and circulated on Telegram.

Pradhan did not detail how the breach occurred but assured a reform committee would be established and action would be taken to maintain transparency and prioritize students' welfare.

Opposition leaders and legal experts have criticized the Modi administration for failing to tackle corruption in these critical exams that shape the future of aspiring doctors and researchers.

"The NTA has one job—to conduct exams—and it has failed spectacularly," said Rishi Shukla, a legal researcher from Lucknow who has filed multiple petitions against the NTA.

Impossible Numbers and a 'Wasted Dream'

The release of NEET results coincided with the national election results on June 4, surprising both students and teachers: 67 students achieved a perfect score of 720, compared to two the previous year. Two years ago, a score of 715 topped the rankings; this year, 225 students scored that high.

At least two students scored 719 and 718 out of 720, statistically impossible under NEET’s marking scheme, further fueling suspicions of irregularities.

The NTA defended itself, stating that examiners awarded “grace marks” to students who lost time due to unforeseen factors. However, the NTA did not clarify the criteria for awarding these marks.

The agency later informed the Supreme Court that it would revoke the grace marks and retest the 1,563 students who received them.

“From the start, there have been issues with the NTA’s administration of the NEET exams this year,” said Shukla, who has called for an impartial court-monitored investigation.

The NEET tests students in physics, biology, and chemistry, comprising 180 questions administered at over 4,500 centers nationwide. In 2023, 304 students scored 700 or higher, compared to 2,100 this year. A high rank in NEET is crucial for admission to medical schools in India.

The NTA attributed the increased scores to a larger candidate pool but acknowledged that this year’s unusually high marks present a new challenge: previously, 550 marks typically guaranteed a spot in government medical schools with affordable fees, which have 56,000 seats. Now, many candidates must turn to significantly more expensive private schools.

For aspirants like 19-year-old Pratibha, this situation feels like a shattered dream. She expressed distrust in the NTA’s promised re-examination for grace mark recipients.

“This re-test is merely a façade because the government is protecting the corrupt,” she said, requesting anonymity for fear of repercussions. “I have spent my teenage years dreaming of wearing a white coat. Now, it feels wasted. Despite good scores, I didn’t get the rank. My family can’t afford private college fees.”

What is the NEET Paper Worth?

Last week, Education Minister Pradhan strongly denied any NEET paper leaks. However, police in Bihar, governed by Pradhan’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) coalition, reported securing confessions that confirmed the leaks.

A senior police official in Patna confirmed that an arrested individual admitted to accessing the NEET paper the night before the exam for roughly $36,000. This confession, however, is inadmissible in court under Indian law.

Pradhan responded that the ministry is liaising with police and awaiting a detailed report but rejected calls for a NEET re-examination.

“Some issues are region-specific. Those culpable, including anyone from the NTA, will face consequences,” he said. “A single incident in Bihar shouldn’t impact the hundreds of thousands who took the test sincerely.”

Nonetheless, the arrests in Bihar are far from isolated.

In Gujarat, Prime Minister Modi’s home state, police uncovered a scam involving at least 30 students from various parts of India who appeared at one center after allegedly paying between $12,000 and $50,000. This involved private coaching centers, teachers, and an exam supervisor. Five arrests have been made thus far.

Amidst a heatwave on June 20, Varun Choudhary, president of the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), led protesting students to Pradhan’s residence in New Delhi, where they were quickly removed by police.

Choudhary told Al Jazeera that protesters threw fake currency outside Pradhan’s home, symbolizing their willingness to pay the minister but demanding the future of students be secured.

There is no evidence implicating any government minister in the exam misconduct.

“It’s unprecedented when a thief confesses to a robbery, yet the owner claims all is well,” Choudhary remarked, urging for the NTA's disbandment and Pradhan’s resignation. “The government is risking the future of over three million students. This mistrust between students and examinations is unacceptable.”

The Supreme Court, addressing various petitions, also criticized the NTA, asserting, “Any negligence, even 0.001 percent, must be thoroughly addressed.”

However, the court did not delay the medical seat allocations post-NEET, scheduled for July 1. The next hearing is on July 8.

One Nation, One Examination?

Opposition leaders, critical of NEET for replacing state-run exams with a single national test, attacked the Modi government’s handling of the medical exams.

“Tamil Nadu was first to call NEET a scam, and now the entire nation agrees,” said MK Stalin, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. “We will end this one day. It’s our responsibility. Education should not be hindered by societal, financial, or political issues.”

Kerala’s Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also accused the central government of “gross inefficiency” affecting the exam’s credibility, calling the repeated failures unacceptable and wasteful of public funds.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi mocked Modi, saying, “They claim Modi stopped the Russia-Ukraine war but can’t—or won’t—stop paper leaks in India.”

Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav demanded a court-monitored probe, asserting, “The culprits must face the harshest penalties.”

The ongoing controversies around NEET and NET add to growing concerns over India’s competitive exam industry. Thousands flock to coaching centers in cities like Kota, which claim to know the secrets to getting into top engineering and medical schools. These high-pressure environments also contribute to a rising suicide rate, leading to new shows and movies on the topic.

Just a week before this year’s NEET, another student was found hanging in his room in Kota. The student, failing twice before, left a note apologizing to his father. His death marked the 10th suicide in Kota this year.

“Our education system is a pressure cooker, and it’s been exploding for some time,” said the head of a renowned medical school in Rajasthan, who requested anonymity. “This centralized exam system is causing irreversible damage to students.”

“This ‘one nation, one examination’ approach isn’t suitable for India,” he concluded. “The government must realize this for the sake of our students’ futures.”