Fear and frustration gripped medical seat aspirants in Karnataka after the National Testing Agency (NTA) cancelled the NEET 2026 examination held on May 3 and announced a re-examination following the leakage of question papers, throwing the futures of lakhs of students into uncertainty.

This year, around 1.50 lakh students across the State wrote the UGNEET.

Krishi (name changed), said, “This was my third attempt at NEET. I was really hoping to get into a college this year. I have given this exam three years of my life, and with the paper leak, I am left in a state of hopelessness and anxiety about my future, as I am not sure how well I can prepare for the re-examination.” She urged that agencies concerned get to the core of this issue and make sure incidents like these don’t repeat.

Dhyan, another student, said, “I have sacrificed two years for NEET, and this time, the exam went well. There was a possibility of getting a good rank. But now the exam has been cancelled. I fear how the re-examination will go.”

Meanwhile, condemning the NEET cancellation, members of the Youth Congress staged a protest against the Union government at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on Tuesday evening.

‘Warned in 2024’

Taking to X, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said, “In 2024 itself, our government had placed Karnataka’s concerns on record: NEET is unfair to rural and poor students, weakens school education, and takes away the States’ rightful authority over admissions. Today’s cancellation proves that our concerns were real, urgent and rooted in the interests of students.”

Karnataka Medical Education Minister Sharanprakash Patil termed the cancellation “a grave injustice to lakhs of aspiring medical students across the country.”

“For the past four to five years, irregularities and controversies in NEET have been a recurring phenomenon with no end in sight,” he said.

Coaching centres’ role

Dr. Patil alleged that coaching centres in Rajasthan and Haryana are actively orchestrating question paper leaks to boost their own reputation and business. “Elements within the Union government are complicit in this racket. The Union Minister concerned must resign immediately. Strict regulatory action should be taken against coaching centres indulging in such malpractices,” he added.

Higher Education Minister M.C. Sudhakar said that it is high time for the Union government to submit an affidavit to the Supreme Court about its inability to conduct the NEET exams and allow States to conduct admissions to medical courses at their level.

“Our State had already passed a resolution regarding the scrapping of NEET. We have been conducting admissions to engineering courses without any such malpractice. Let the Centre conduct separate tests for All India Quota,” said the Minister. Dr. Sudhakar further stated that Karnataka’s CET is a successful model.

School Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa said repeated loopholes in the NEET examination system are having a serious impact on the mental state of students. “We are constantly trying to reduce the academic and mental stress of children at the school level. However, such irresponsible decisions of the central government are pushing children and parents into a pit of despair,” the Minister stated.

Meanwhile, the Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy criticised the State Congress leaders and said, “Let the Karnataka government clean the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) first. Let the State government answer how many exams they have postponed. Congress has no morality to question the Centre on the cancellation of NEET.”

Unions react

Student organisations like All India Democratic Students Organisation (AIDSO) and All India Save Education Committee (AISEC) also condemned the cancellation of NEET.

Ajay Kamath, State Secretary, AIDSO Karnataka, demanded the abolition of the National Testing Agency (NTA), which has lost the trust of the country by repeatedly failing to conduct examinations transparently and securely.

“There must be a high-level independent judicial inquiry to track down the individuals and the coaching mafia behind the paper leak, and the guilty must receive exemplary punishment,” he said.

Akhila Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishath-Karnataka (ABVP) urged strict and decisive action against the “education mafia” threatening the integrity of examinations.

“The decision of the Union government to hand over the investigation into the alleged paper leak and irregularities in the NEET to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is an appropriate and necessary step,” it stated.