No CBT for NEET 2026 re-exam: Supreme Court refuses plea to change test format

New Delhi: Refusing to accept the plea seeking a Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode for the NEET UG 2026 re-test on June 21 instead of its existing pen and paper mode, the Supreme Court of India observed similar requests had already been dismissed and said there was no justification for changing the examination format at a stage when authorities are already dealing with the challenges of reconducting the exam.

A division bench comprising Justice P.S. Narasimha and Justice Aravind Kumar made the observation on May 1, 2026 while hearing a writ petition filed by RJD MP Sudhakar Singh, social activist Anubhav Garg, Dr Dhruv Chauhan, National Spokesperson of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), and political leader Harisharan Devgan through advocate Satyam Singh Rajput, advocate-on-Record Neema, along with a legal team comprising Muskan Singh and Adarsh Singh.

The petition primarily sought the immediate transition of the National Eligibility--Entrance Test (NEET-UG) to a Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode, contending that repeated paper leak controversies and alleged security lapses have exposed the vulnerability of the existing pen-and-paper examination system conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA).

At the outset, the petitioner's counsel informed the court that he was pressing only one relief - conduct of the re-test through CBT mode. "Today I am not pressing any other prayer. It should be CBT," the counsel submitted.

However, Justice Narasimha pointed out that similar pleas had already been rejected earlier. "Similar matters we have dismissed already," he remarked, as per the latest live law media report.

In response, the counsel submitted that the authorities were proceeding with the examination process on a physical basis for the re-test on June 21.

On this, Justice Narasimha observed that there was "no question" of granting such relief at this stage when the authorities are already dealing with significant challenges.

"You know what kind of problems we are having. The examination was cancelled, it is being reconducted," Justice Narasimha observed.

The court further noted the significant pressure under which the examination authorities were functioning and again pointed out that similar requests had previously been rejected.

"The kind of pressure that they have, similar matters we have dismissed," Justice Narasimha observed.

When the counsel again stated that he was only pressing the CBT-related prayer, Justice Narasimha indicated that it would not take up the matter immediately and said, "We will keep it after vacation."

Accordingly, the matter has been posted to July, effectively denying any relief before the NEET-UG 2026 re-test scheduled for June 21.

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that the plea referred to the alleged NEET-UG 2026 paper leak and stated that despite recommendations by the K. Radhakrishnan committee after the 2024 controversy, the examination continued under the same physical paper-handling framework.

The petition sought directions to conduct the June 21 NEET-UG 2026 re-exam in CBT mode and asked for a time-bound roadmap for complete digital transition of the examination system. It also demanded replacement of the NTA with an independent statutory examination authority and called for reforms including biometric verification, AI-based surveillance, encrypted digital systems and stricter action against organised cheating networks.

“The present pen-and-paper system is inherently vulnerable owing to dependence upon physical logistics chains, strong rooms, transportation networks and third-party operational mechanisms, each creating multiple access points and possibilities of unauthorised disclosure,” the petition stated.

It also sought a direction to the CBI to file a status report before the apex court within four weeks regarding the investigation into the alleged NEET-UG 2026 paper leak, including details of arrests, charges and progress of prosecution.

The NEET UG 2026 exam was conducted on May 3 by the National Testing Agency and was held from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM in pen-and-paper mode. Over 22.7 lakh aspirants appeared for the examination this year. It took place across 551 cities in India and 14 cities abroad, covering over 5,400 centres.

However, the NTA on May 12, 2026, declared the cancellation of the examination held on May 3 and subsequently announced the re-examination on June 21, 2026.

This came in the backdrop of the probe by the Rajasthan Police Special Operations Group, which reportedly found a “guess paper” containing more than 100 questions similar to those asked in the NEET UG examination. The question paper series under scrutiny has been described as a “guess paper” which reportedly contained around 410 questions. Out of these, nearly 120 questions are alleged to have appeared in the Biology and Chemistry sections of the examination.

As an aftermath of the exam cancellation, protests were held, with aspirants and members of the medical fraternity blaming NTA and the Education Ministry for this failure.

Due to the alleged controversy, the central government decided to refer the matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation for a comprehensive inquiry into the allegations. Based on the centre's direction, the CBI registered an FIR in the case and has so far arrested 13 people.

Even though a re-test has been announced and the Union Government has announced its decision to transition towards a Computer-based testing mode, demand for replacing NTA has been escalating.

Meanwhile, the NTA informed the apex court in an affidavit that it is all set to conduct the NEET UG exam in computer-based test (CBT) mode from next year instead of the pen and paper mode after consulting the Centre. The agency said that a high-level committee of experts (HLCE) has recommended the transition of NEET-UG to the CBT mode.

Also read- Major reforms introduced after NEET 2026 leak row- NTA files affidavit, Supreme Court stresses fixing accountability