Rajasthan police have launched a probe into the alleged paper leak before the all-India medical undergraduate entrance exam held on May 3.
The National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), said it was waiting for the findings of the investigation by a special operation group (SOG) of the Rajasthan police.
Over 22 lakh candidates had appeared for NEET-UG 2026 for admission into MBBS and BDS courses.
Vishal Bansal, additional director-general of Rajasthan police’s SOG, told news agency ANI that a “guess paper” was circulated among students through mobile phones around 15-30 days before the exam. The “guess paper” had around 410 questions, of which 120 matched the questions from the
actual test.
Bansal said they were examining whether any cheating or criminal activity had taken place. No arrest has been made so far.
According to a statement issued by the NTA on X, the exam was conducted as scheduled and under a full security protocol. It said the question papers were transported in GPS-tracked vehicles bearing unique, traceable watermark identifiers. Examination halls operated under AI-assisted CCTV monitoring from a central control room, with biometric verification of every candidate and 5G jammers in operation.
“On the late evening of May 7, 2026, four days after the examination, NTA received inputs concerning alleged malpractice activity around the examination. These inputs were escalated by NTA to central agencies on the morning of May 8, 2026, for independent verification and necessary action. The action subsequently undertaken by the law enforcement agencies, including the detentions reported in the media over recent days, is the result of their professional and timely work,” the NTA said.
“The matter is presently under investigation and the facts will be established by the agencies in due course. NTA will not pre-judge the inquiry, nor characterise its likely outcome. Whatever the agencies determine — including findings that may require further action — will be examined transparently and disclosed in keeping with established procedure,” it added.
The agency said the effort and integrity of bona fide aspirants were not in question and would not be devalued.
Lok Sabha Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi tweeted that NEET was no longer an examination, but had become “an auction”. He said there had been 89 paper leaks in 10 years, leading to re-examinations on 48 occasions. “The trust of 2.2 million students has been shattered...,” said the post.