SC to hear NEET-UG paper leak pleas today as Centre weighs IAF role for retest

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear key petitions in the NEET-UG paper leak case on Friday (May 29), even as the Centre considers using Indian Air Force aircraft to transport question papers for the June 21 retest to avoid any repeat of the controversy.

The hearing is significant as petitions filed by the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) and the United Doctors Front (UDF) have sought the dissolution of the National Testing Agency (NTA), a court-monitored computer-based testing system for future examinations, and a CBI probe into the alleged leak.

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The Supreme Court had issued notices earlier this week, but the Centre, the NTA and the Central Bureau of Investigation are yet to file their responses.

The case has intensified scrutiny over the conduct of one of the country’s largest entrance examinations, which impacts lakhs of medical aspirants every year.

IAF option under consideration

Meanwhile, the government is exploring the possibility of using the Indian Air Force (IAF) for transportation of NEET-UG papers to ensure foolproof conduct of the retest on June 21, official sources said on Thursday.

The option was explored at a high-level meeting chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and attended by Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia here.

The ministers and senior officials discussed whether IAF aircraft could be used for transportation of the NEET-UG test papers, the sources said. However, as of now, no final decision has been taken and the option will be placed before Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a final view, they said.

The prime minister is believed to have been personally monitoring the preparations for the June 21 retest and he is being updated on every details related to the examination process, the sources said.

Thursday's meeting gave attention to the entire examination process, ”from the setting of question papers by teachers and printing of papers to transportation and security arrangements.

National Testing Agency (NTA) Director General Abhishek Singh and senior officials from the Education Ministry, among others, attended the meeting.

NEET fee refund window extended

The National Testing Agency has extended till June 22 the deadline for submitting bank account details for refund of examination fee for candidates of NEET-UG 2026, which was cancelled and would be held afresh amid allegations of paper leak.

While announcing the re-examination of NEET-UG 2026 on June 21, the NTA had said no examination fee would be charged from candidates for the fresh test. The NTA had also said fees already paid by students will be refunded.

In continuation of the public notices dated May 12 and May 22, the NTA had provided a facility on the NEET (UG)-2026 registration portal for submission of preferred bank account details for processing of fee refund from May 22 to May 26 (till 11:50 PM).

In a notice shared on X on Wednesday, the NTA said so far around 13 lakh candidates have updated their bank account details. The agency said the extension has been granted to facilitate candidates who are yet to submit their details.

Retest after paper leak

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) or NEET-UG was conducted on May 3 across 551 Indian cities and at 14 overseas centres. Nearly 23 lakh candidates had registered for the test, which was conducted by the NTA.

According to the NTA, information regarding alleged malpractices was received on the evening of May 7, four days after the exam was held.

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The NTA said the inputs were shared with the central agencies the next morning for "independent verification and necessary action".

On May 12, the NTA cancelled NEET-UG amid allegations of paper leak. A re-examination has been scheduled for June 21.

The CBI registered a case based on a written complaint by the Department of Higher Education under the Ministry of Education.

The central probe agency formed special teams to probe the case, conducted searches across the country and made prompt arrests So far, 13 accused have been arrested in this case from Delhi, Jaipur, Gurugram, Nasik, Pune, Latur and Ahilyanagar.

The investigation conducted so far has brought out the actual source of the leakage of the question papers, the CBI had said earlier.