Patna: The National Testing Agency (NTA) has cancelled the NEET-UG 2026 examination conducted on May 3, following investigations into an alleged solver gang operating from Bihar and fresh concerns over the integrity of the medical entrance test. New dates for the re-examination will be announced later, the agency said.
The cancellation comes after police in Bihar uncovered an organised racket accused of arranging proxy candidates, or “solvers”, to appear in the examination in exchange for payments ranging between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 60 lakh per candidate.
According to Nalanda police, the alleged mastermind of the operation was an MBBS student identified as Awadhesh Kumar, who studied at VIMS Medical College. Seven people linked to the gang have so far been arrested and sent to judicial custody, while raids are continuing in multiple districts to trace other accused.
Arrests During Vehicle Checking
The case came to light on the night of May 2, when Pawapuri police intercepted two luxury vehicles — a Scorpio-N and a Brezza — during routine checking in Nalanda district. Three individuals were detained initially.
Police said mobile phone data recovered from the accused led investigators to a wider network allegedly involved in deploying proxy candidates in the NEET examination.
Subsequent raids were carried out in Muzaffarpur, Aurangabad, Jamui and other districts, leading to four more arrests.
Among those arrested are Harshraj, son of Sitamarhi-based doctor Naresh Kumar Das, Manoj Kumar from Muzaffarpur, Gaurav Kumar from Bochahan, and Subhash Kumar from the Hathauri police station area.
Investigators alleged that the gang finalised deals only after collecting advance payments of Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 2 lakh from candidates or their families.
How the Solver Network Operated
Police officials said the syndicate promised candidates guaranteed success in the NEET examination by sending “solvers” — proxy examinees — to appear at designated centres in place of the actual aspirants.
The racket allegedly charged between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 60 lakh per seat. Officials said the arrests made before the examination disrupted the gang’s plans before proxy candidates could be deployed.
During interrogation, the accused allegedly named several associates, including Ujjwal Raj alias Raja Babu and Aman Kumar Singh, as key members of the network.
All arrested accused were produced before court on May 5 and remanded to judicial custody.
Why the NTA Cancelled NEET-UG 2026
In a statement, the NTA said investigative aspects linked to the examination were handed over to central agencies on May 8 to protect the integrity of the test process.
The agency later decided, with approval from the central government, to cancel the examination after receiving findings from investigating agencies indicating that the existing examination process had been compromised.
The NTA said candidates will not need to register again for the fresh examination. Existing examination centres will remain unchanged, while fresh admit cards will be issued.
The examination fee paid by candidates will also be refunded.
Rajasthan Probe Deepens Concerns
The Bihar investigation coincided with a separate probe in Rajasthan, where handwritten “guess papers” matching several questions from the actual examination were allegedly recovered from students.
On May 10, the Rajasthan Special Operations Group detained 13 suspects from Dehradun, Sikar and Jhunjhunu, including a career counsellor linked to a coaching institute in Sikar.
Investigators claim questions worth nearly 600 marks out of the total 720 had circulated among students before the examination.
According to the probe, more than 300 handwritten questions related to Physics, Chemistry and Biology were shared in advance, with around 150 questions allegedly appearing verbatim in the final examination paper.
The Special Operations Group is currently examining whether the material constitutes a formal paper leak or an illegally circulated “question bank”. Social media chats and call records of suspects are also being scrutinised.
NEET Leak Row Echoes 2024 Controversy
The latest controversy has revived memories of the NEET-UG 2024 paper leak case, which triggered nationwide outrage and investigations in Bihar and Jharkhand.
At the time, allegations of a paper leak, unusually high scores, and multiple toppers emerging from a single examination centre had sparked political and legal controversy.
Although the Supreme Court declined to cancel the entire examination, a re-test was conducted for 1,539 candidates at selected centres after evidence of malpractice surfaced during investigations.
