
NEET UG 2024 Controversy: Physics Wallah CEO Challenges NTA's Grace Marks in Supreme Court
The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admissions to undergraduate medical courses has courted controversy this year over the National Testing Agency's (NTA) decision to award grace marks to several candidates. Alakh Pandey, the CEO of the prominent edtech company Physics Wallah, has now approached the Supreme Court challenging this move by the NTA.
Physics Wallah CEO Moves Supreme Court Over NEET-UG Grace Marks On June 9, 2024, Alakh Pandey filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court contesting the NTA's decision to award grace marks to numerous candidates who appeared for NEET-UG 2024. Pandey's lawyer, Advocate J Sai Deepak, mentioned the matter before a vacation bench led by Justice Vikram Nath for urgent listing. However, the bench directed the lawyer to route the listing request through the Chief Justice of India's office.
The petitioner argues that the NTA's decision to grant grace marks was "arbitrary." According to Pandey's counsel, the edtech CEO has collected representations from around 20,000 students, indicating that 70 to 80 grace marks have been awarded randomly to at least 1,500 students.
NEET-UG 2024 Alleged Paper Leak and Grace Marks Controversy The Physics Wallah CEO's petition comes amidst growing concerns over the conduct of NEET-UG 2024. On June 8, the Supreme Court issued a notice on another petition seeking the cancellation of the NEET-UG 2024 exam held on May 5 due to an alleged paper leak. Observing that the sanctity of the exam had been compromised, the apex court sought a response from the NTA on the paper leak allegations by July 8. However, the court refused to stay the counselling process.
Notably, the petition challenging the NEET-UG 2024 exam was filed before the declaration of results on June 4.
Another NEET Candidate Challenges Grace Marks Formula Pandey's petition is not the only one questioning the NTA's decision to award grace marks. Another NEET candidate has filed a petition challenging the award of grace marks meant to compensate for the alleged loss of time during the exams.
The petitioner argues that the "normalization formula" used to award grace marks, at best, can only extend to the number of questions left unanswered proportional to the time lost. This is because each question carries equal weightage, and thus, an equal time distribution to answer each question can be assumed.
Recall of NEET-UG 2024 Results and Fresh Exam Demanded On June 9, a separate petition was filed in the Supreme Court seeking the recall of the NEET-UG 2024 results and the conduct of a fresh examination. The petitioners have alleged arbitrariness in the grant of grace marks by the NTA.
They contend that the high marks of 718 and 719 out of 720 secured by several students are "statistically impossible." The petitioners allege that the NTA's grant of grace marks, purportedly due to delays during the exam, was a "mala fide exercise" to give "backdoor entry" to certain students.
The petitioners have also raised suspicions about the fact that 67 students from one particular center scored the perfect 720 marks.
NTA Forms Committee to Review Grace Marks In response to the mounting criticism, the NTA and the Union Education Ministry announced the formation of a four-member committee on June 8 to review the results of over 1,500 candidates who were awarded "grace marks" to compensate for the "loss of time" suffered while appearing for NEET (Undergraduate) 2024.
The committee will scrutinize the granting of grace marks and determine if any discrepancies or irregularities occurred in the process.
Concerns Over NEET-UG 2024's Integrity The multiple petitions filed in the Supreme Court and the formation of a review committee highlight the growing concerns over the integrity of the NEET-UG 2024 examination process. The allegations of paper leaks, arbitrary granting of grace marks, and statistical improbabilities in the results have cast a shadow over the credibility of the prestigious medical entrance test.
As the Supreme Court deliberates on these matters, the spotlight remains firmly on the NTA's decision-making and the measures taken to uphold the sanctity of the NEET-UG examination.
The medical fraternity, aspirants, and the general public await the apex court's rulings, which could potentially reshape the NEET-UG admissions process and restore confidence in the nation's premier medical entrance examination.