Video Showing NEET Paper Leak In Telegram Fake : NTA Tells Supreme Court
Gyanvi Khanna
10 July 2024 5:54 PM GMT
The National Testing Agency has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that the video showing a photo of the NEET UG exam paper leaked on Telegram on May 4 was fake. The timestamp was manipulated to create a false impression of an early leak., the affidavit added. On the last hearing date (July 8), a bench led by CJI DY Chandrachud sought the responses of the Union/NTA...
The National Testing Agency has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that the video showing a photo of the NEET UG exam paper leaked on Telegram on May 4 was fake. The timestamp was manipulated to create a false impression of an early leak., the affidavit added.
On the last hearing date (July 8), a bench led by CJI DY Chandrachud sought the responses of the Union/NTA on the extent of the paper leak and possible segregation of the wrongdoers from others. The Court said that if the sanctity of the entire exam has been affected and it was impossible to seperate the beneficiaries of fraud from the honest candidates, then a re-test may be necessary. The Court also said that the re-test would be the last option, considering the impact on nearly 24 lakh students.
During the proceedings, Senior Counsel Narender Hooda had said that the question papers were being circulated through Telegram app - an electronic means - on May 3 and 4, ahead of the exam.
In the affidavit, NTA said that the comments and discussions on social media corroborate that the images in the video were edited, and the date was intentionally modified to suggest a May 4th leak. The screenshots highlight the fabricated nature of the claims made in the video.
“Furthermore, a neutral third party posted a video demonstrating how the date on the examination could be edited to show May 4 instead of the actual date.”
Last day, during the hearing, the Court had observed that if the leak has happened through electornic media, then it could be of a widespread nature.
The NTA also reiterated that the alleged paper leak case in Patna has not affected the sanctity of the entire exam.
"The alleged incident/attempt of leak in Patna does not seem to have any bearing on the conduct of entire examination, as the number of students found to be involved by the investigating agencies is minuscule compared to number of candidates who appeared," the NTA said.
The cancellation of the entire examination on the basis of the aforesaid factor, would be hugely counterproductive and significantly harmful to the larger public interest, especially to the career prospects of the qualified candidates
The Centre has also filed an affidavit stating that there are no indications of any mass malpractice in the exam, as per the data anayltics study done by the experts of the IIT Madras.
The Supreme Court will hear the matter tomorrow (July 11).
Case: Vanshika Yadav v. Union of India, WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) No. 335 of 2024
