CBI is in charge of Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Bihar NEET UG 2024 malpractice cases.
Exam 2024 row: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has assumed responsibility for the investigation of five fresh cases of purported malpractices in the NEET-UG medical entrance examination, which were previously being investigated by the Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Bihar police departments. Three cases from Rajasthan and one each from Gujarat and Bihar have been re-registered by the central agency as its own FIR, according to officials.
Furthermore, there are intentions to pursue another case from Latur in Maharashtra. Officials said that, with the exception of the Bihar case, these cases mostly involve instances of impersonation and cheating by local officials, invigilators, and candidates. The Union ministry of education directed that a thorough investigation into the matter be carried out, and thus the CBI became involved.
The CBI is currently working on six investigations into purported anomalies in NEET-UG as a result of these new cases. For admission to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and other medical programs throughout India, the National Testing Agency (NTA) exam is essential. More than 23 lakh candidates took part in the test, which was administered on May 5 at 4,750 locations across 571 cities, including 14 overseas.
Following widespread student protests in multiple cities, the education ministry decided to step in and transfer the investigation to the CBI. In its request to the CBI, the ministry demands a comprehensive probe into possible crimes involving candidates, institutions, and middlemen, such as conspiracy, deception, impersonation, breach of trust, and evidence tampering.
According to CBI officials, the investigation’s purview will encompass not only a closer look at the acts of public servants connected to the exam conduct, but also a more comprehensive analysis of the larger sequence of events and potential conspiracies. The government will have to address the controversy in Parliament, opposition members of the 18th Lok Sabha stated on its first day of session. The government, according to a number of recently elected members who took the oath of office in the Lok Sabha on Monday, is not taking into account the difficulties faced by students who feel uneasy.
The controversy surrounding alleged irregularities in competitive exams, such as the University Grants Commission-National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test Undergraduate (NEET-UG) medical entrance exam, persisted as Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan took his oath. Opponents raised the slogan “NEET, NEET.”
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