Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has criticized the government over ongoing controversies in national-level entrance examinations, particularly irregularities in the NEET UG 2026. The Congress leader stated that students who spent immense effort preparing for the exam have been left stranded by recent paper leaks, forcing them to start all over again to reappear for the test.
Shashi Tharoor Calls NEET Paper Leak a ‘Betrayal of an Entire Generation’
Launching a strong attack on the BJP-led government, the MP asserted that the recent controversies surrounding NEET and the CBSE On-Screen Marking system have betrayed an entire generation of students.”If you run a process where the integrity of the examinations cannot be trusted, you create a tragic situation where people who have spent so much effort in preparing suddenly find that there are leaks, corruption, and dishonesty. The entire process becomes vitiated, exams are cancelled, and they have to start all over again. When people see this, they feel deeply betrayed and disappointed,” Congress leader said.
Shashi Tharoor Questions the Credibility of the Country’s Education System
The Congress MP questioned the credibility of the Indian examination system, comparing it unfavorably to foreign and board examinations like the SAT, Cambridge exams, or ISC, where transparency is maintained.”The world is full of competitive examinations that are conducted fairly, whether it’s the SAT, the Cambridge exams, or the ISC,” he noted. He questioned why government-run national examinations in India repeatedly face systematic failures and lack basic integrity.
NEET UG Re-Exam to Continue in Offline Mode
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has ordered that the NEET UG 2026 re-exam will proceed in its pen-and-paper format. The apex court dismissed a petition filed by Rajya Sabha MP Sudhakar Singh, which had sought directives to conduct the entrance exam via Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode to eliminate the risk of physical paper leaks. A bench headed by Justice P.S. Narasimha ruled that implementing a major systemic change at this late stage is practically impossible and could severely disrupt the process for candidates.Iin an official affidavit submitted to the court, the National Testing Agency (NTA) stated that it is reviewing infrastructure upgrades and aims to be fully prepared to transition the NEET entrance exam to CBT mode from 2027 onwards.
