Tamil Nadu Assembly unanimously passes resolution to scrap NEET
Chennai: Amid the raging row over the NEET controversy, the Tamil Nadu Assembly has unanimously passed a resolution against the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET), urging the union government to scrap NEET and allow state governments to undertake medical admissions based on class 12 marks, as was done before NEET's implementation.
The resolution was introduced by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin amid uproar over a paper leak in the NEET-UG 2024 examination and the sudden postponement of the NEET-PG 2024 examination.
According to ANI report, several regional parties, including Manithaneya Makkal Katchi, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist), supported the resolution.
Earlier, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MP K. Kanimozhi reiterated the demand to "exempt" Tamil Nadu from NEET, conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for medical admissions across the country.
"Tamil Nadu has been consistently saying that we do not want NEET. Now it is proved that NEET is not a fair examination, and students are losing so much because of NEET," Kanimozhi said in Delhi.
She said that the state assembly passed a resolution to scrap the national-level entrance exam and also "exempt" the state from it.
"We want NEET to be abolished. We have passed a resolution in our Assembly, and it is still pending with the President for signature," Kanimozhi said. The DMK MP further mentioned that the lives of students are affected while waiting for the President's approval.
This year's NEET UG 2024 exam was mired in controversies after a paper leak scam came to the light. Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that around 13 people, including four examinees and their family members, were arrested in Bihar for their alleged involvement in the paper leak of the NEET-UG exam. Patna police sources had previously claimed that the NEET-UG question papers along with their answers were provided to around 20 aspirants a day before the date of the exam i.e. May 5, 2024.
Then, the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar Police, which took over the investigation, revealed that the brokers involved in the NEET paper leak scam took between Rs 30 lakh to Rs 50 lakh from each of the medical aspirants in exchange for giving them the question paper of the NEET UG 2024 question paper ahead of the examination.
Multiple pleas have been filed before the High Courts and the Supreme Court seeking an investigation into the alleged paper leak scam. Some of the pleas demanded the scrapping of the NEET UG 2024 exam and holding a retest. Meanwhile, during the case proceedings, NTA earlier decided to withdraw the grace marks awarded to 1563 candidates and hold an optional retest for those candidates. Those who did not opt for the retest were allowed to retain their original marks, without the grace marks.
The matter is now being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Central Government on June 22, 2024, handed over the charge of investigation in the alleged irregularities in the NEET UG 2024 examination to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
"Certain cases of alleged irregularities / cheating / impersonation / malpractices have been reported. For transparency on the conduct of the examination process, the Ministry of Education, Government of India after a review has decided to entrust the matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for comprehensive investigation," the Ministry of Education stated in a release.
