‘Matter Referred To CBI, Next Date Will Be Declared Soon’: Centre On UGC-NET Exam Cancellation Row

A day after the Centre ordered the cancellation of the UGC-NET amid serious questions on the “integrity” of the exams, the Union Education Ministry on Thursday said that it has handed over the matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for probe.

Speaking at a press conference in the national capital, Education Ministry Joint Secretary Govind Jaiswal said prima facie the government felt the exam had been compromised. “No complaints were received but the inputs we received from agencies indicated that the integrity of the exam has been compromised. The action was taken suo motu to safeguard the interests of the students,” Jaiswal said.

“9 lakh students had participated in the UGC-NET exam that the National Testing Agency (NTA) conducted on June 18. The ministry saw that there was a chance that the examination had been compromised. The ministry has decided to cancel the examination. The next date will be declared soon. The matter has been referred to the CBI,” he added.

The move follows protests and demands by student groups outside the residence of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who called for an investigation into alleged paper leaks and corruption within the NTA. Several members of the Congress-affiliated NSUI were detained today while protesting outside Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s residence here against the cancellation of the UGC-NET examination.

Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over cancellation of UGC-NET. “It was being said that Modi ji stopped the Russia-Ukraine war. But due to some reasons, Narendra Modi has not been able to stop or doesn’t want to stop paper leaks in India,” he said.

Late on Wednesday night, the Union education ministry ordered the cancellation of UGC-NET following inputs of the exam’s integrity being compromised. Members of the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) led by its national president Varun Choudhary gathered outside Pradhan’s residence and demanded a ban on the NTA and a probe into the alleged incidents of paper leak.

The student leaders were seen raising slogans against the alleged corruption in the NTA and the perceived inaction by the education minister. In a symbolic display of corruption, Choudhary flung a bag full of counterfeit currency in the air and demanded an urgent probe into the matter. The protesters also demanded an investigation into the irregularities in the NEET-UG examination.

(With agency inputs)