Opposition accuses Modi government of jeopardising students’ future over recurrent NEET paper leaks

The cancellation of the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (Undergraduate) 2026 amid allegations of paper leak and exam irregularities triggered a political storm on Tuesday; Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP of being “partners in the theft” of students’ future.

Opposition parties accused the Narendra Modi government of failing to protect the future of hundreds of thousands of students and demanded accountability from the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the exam.

NEET-UG 2026 cancelled: Follow LIVE updates on 12 May 2026

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge demanded strict action against the officials responsible for the leak. “This also tarnishes the reputation of our students because people can say they passed the exam by cheating,” Mr Kharge told reporters.

In a post on X, Mr Gandhi said the hard work, sacrifices and dreams of over 22 million students were “crushed by this corrupt BJP regime”. “Some fathers took loans, some mothers sold their jewelry, thousands of children stayed up all night studying, and in return they faced paper leaks, government negligence and organized corruption in education,” he said in his post.

Describing the development as “not just a failure” but also a “crime against the future of the youth”, Mr Gandhi claimed that “paper mafias” had repeatedly escaped punishment while honest students were suffering mental stress, financial burden and uncertainty due to the re-examination process.

“What is the point of education if one’s destiny is determined by money and connections and not by hard work? The Prime Minister’s so-called Amrit Kaal has turned into a Vish Kaal (poison-filled era) for the country,” Mr. Gandhi said.

Referring to the 2024 NEET controversy in his next post, he urged students to do an online search and find out where the then NTA chief is currently serving. “See? Do you understand now? The BJP rewards those who are playing with the future of millions of hard-working students by protecting and encouraging them. It is clear that Modi ji and the BJP are partners in the theft of your future,” he said.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India also condemned the alleged document leak and demanded structural reforms in the examination system. In separate statements, the CPI(M) and CPI said that hundreds of thousands of students have suffered serious psychological distress due to repeated irregularities in national examinations.

CPI(M) demanded disbandment of NTA, centralization of examinations through government bodies, a thorough investigation into the leak and strict punishment of those responsible.

CPI general secretary D. Raja described the cancellation of the exam as evidence of the “collapse” of the examination system and reiterated the party’s opposition to NEET, calling it “unfair and discriminatory”. He alleged that repeated exam frauds and cancellations have disproportionately harmed poor and rural students while benefiting coaching centers and the privileged.

Former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal alleged “political patronage” behind the repeated paper leaks and said the NEET question paper was leaked four times in the last nine years. “I want to tell the students that they must come out to the streets. This government only understands the language of mass agitation,” Mr. Kejriwal said.

Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member Sagarika Ghose said the cancellation had thrown the lives of thousands of students into “confusion and anxiety”. In a post on X, he claimed there was “zero accountability” in the Modi government and described the administration as “incapable of day-to-day governance”.