MPs question NEET, call on govt to abandon ‘One Nation, One Exam’

“NEET is not necessary. Do not go for ‘One India, One Exam’,” exhorted DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday during the debate on the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026.

Arguing that the national eligibility test for admission to medical colleges disadvantages first-generation students aspiring to become doctors and those who study in their native languages, Maran pointed out that not everyone can afford the exorbitant coaching required to crack NEET.

“Has any improvement in healthcare in the country happened because of NEET? What purpose does it continue to serve?” asked the DMK MP.

Maran also objected to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s remark that the NEET paper leak was, in a sense, beneficial as students got more time to prepare for the re-examination. He said the statement was insensitive and amounted to celebrating paper leaks.

CPI(M) MP from Tamil Nadu Su Venkatesan joined other MPs from southern states in opposing the centralised examination system. “NEET kills teaching and celebrates coaching,” he said. “Will fast-track courts solve this issue?” he asked, adding, “NEET will bury state rights. NEET kills students’ self-confidence and pushes them towards taking their own lives.”

The House did not pay any attention to the amendment moved by RSP MP N.K. Premachandran, who suggested that the Bill be circulated among the public to elicit feedback. Once a Bill is introduced in Parliament, it can either be taken up for consideration, referred to a parliamentary committee for scrutiny, or circulated among the public.

The RSP member moved the amendment on the grounds that many students and experts would like to provide their feedback on the Bill.

Describing the Bill as an eyewash, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi said that of the 45 accused against whom charge sheets were filed in the 2024 NEET-UG leak case, 44 had been released on bail. The main accused remained untraceable for 11 months before being released on bail. The law failed then and will fail again, he suggested, accusing the government of making only cosmetic changes.

Pointing out that the prime minister asks ministers to focus more on Instagram during Cabinet meetings, Gogoi questioned the government’s seriousness. He alleged that the government spared the chairman of the National Testing Agency because of his association with the RSS.

“Education is too important to be controlled by the RSS,” he said. “For you, education is not about building skills or scientific temper, but about creating people who will blindly follow you tomorrow.”

Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra took up the cue and said, “Instead of increasing year by year, the share of education in the country’s total budget is actually declining. Parents are under a lot of economic pressure to pay for donations and capitation fees. Unemployment is sky-high — hundreds of paper leaks have happened in the last 12 years, but not even one person has been punished so far. Our education system is filled with RSS pracharaks,” she added.

“This Bill is an admission of the government’s failure, and increasing the punishment will not deter leaks,” argued Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee.

“The government treats paper leaks as an ‘act of God’, while the problem has become systemic. Yet, this government believes that every protest is a conspiracy, every student is an enemy, and every person asking a question is an anti-national,” said the MP, who was repeatedly heckled by members of the treasury benches.