Tamil Nadu govt orders withdrawal of 65 cases against 1,800 anti-NEET protestors

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government has ordered the withdrawal of 65 criminal cases registered against around 1,800 people who participated in protests demanding the abolition of the NEET.

The government said the status of criminal cases against NEET protesters this year was brought to the notice of the Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, and as per his advice, such cases will be withdrawn.

In an official press release issued on October 31, 2026, the 65 cases were registered at various police stations across Tamil Nadu against around 1,800 people who took part in anti-NEET protests during the period. The cases are currently pending at different stages.

Also read- NEET paper leak: Parliamentary committee to examine integrity of exams, reforms

The matter, including the present status of these cases, was brought to the Chief Minister's attention. Following this, the State Government examined the matter and issued orders to initiate the process of withdrawing all 65 cases.

"Between May 10, 2026, and July 31, 2026, protests against the NEET examination were held at various times across Tamil Nadu. In connection with these protests, a total of 65 criminal cases were registered at various police stations against around 1,800 people. These cases are currently pending at different stages. The matter concerning the cases registered against those who participated in the anti-NEET protests and their present status was brought to the attention of the Hon’ble Chief Minister. Following this, the Tamil Nadu Government carefully examined the matter and, as per the Chief Minister's directions, has issued an order to immediately initiate the necessary legal proceedings for the withdrawal of all 65 criminal cases registered against around 1,800 people who participated in the anti-NEET protests," the press release added. 

The NEET UG 2026 exam was conducted on May 3 by the National Testing Agency (NTA) 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, on May 12, 2026, the NTA declared the examination held on May 3 cancelled and subsequently announced a 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 had been described as a “guess paper” which reportedly contained around 410 questions. Out of these, nearly 120 questions were alleged to have appeared in the Biology and Chemistry sections of the examination.

Also read- NEET: Over 50k suggestions received- Nilekani-led panel gets extension to submit exam reforms report