'Do Not Play With Students’ Future'; NEET Exam Cancellation Due to Centre’s Failure, Says SFI

New Delhi: SFI has sharply criticised the Centre’s decision to cancel the NEET UG 2026 examination, accusing the National Testing Agency (NTA) and the Central government of playing with the future of lakhs of students.

In a Facebook post, SFI State Secretary M Shivaprasad said the authorities who had failed to conduct even a single national-level entrance examination properly is claiming that they will protect the country. He alleged that the cancellation of NEET due to question paper leakage reflected an “unjustifiable failure” on the part of both the NTA and the Central government.

The NEET UG 2026 examination, held on May 3, was cancelled after investigators found evidence of a major question paper leak. The Centre has handed over the probe into the alleged malpractice to the CBI. While the NTA has announced that the examination will be conducted again, a revised date has not yet been declared.

The controversy intensified after it emerged that a “model question paper” circulated before the exam reportedly contained most of the actual questions asked in the test. Preliminary findings suggest that 160 out of the total 180 questions had been leaked in advance. Around 120 questions from the Chemistry section were allegedly identical to those in the leaked material, raising serious concerns about the credibility of the examination.

The Rajasthan Police Special Operations Group has already taken 13 people into custody from Sikar and Dehradun in connection with the case.

Investigating agencies suspect that a medical student from Rajasthan, currently studying in Keralam, played a key role in the leak. Officials believe the student passed on the question papers to coaching centres and contacts in other States. Reports indicate that the leaked papers were sold for ₹5 lakh two days before the examination.