The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Tuesday launched a sharp attack on the National Testing Agency (NTA) following the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak controversy, demanding the immediate dismantling of the examination body and accusing it of repeatedly failing to protect the credibility of national-level competitive examinations.
In a statement issued by its Polit Bureau, the CPI(M) said the alleged leak had pushed nearly 22 lakh medical aspirants into severe mental distress despite students having no role in the controversy.
“The nearly 22 lakh students affected by this leak are now subjected to unnecessary psychological pressure for which they are not responsible,” the party said, alleging that recurring paper leaks were occurring because of the “connivance of corrupt and vested interests who are insensitive to the students’ concerns.”
The Left party argued that the latest scandal reflected a deeper structural failure within the country’s centralised examination system and claimed that repeated irregularities had surfaced ever since the Union government transferred responsibility for conducting major entrance examinations to the NTA. “This is not the first time that exam papers have been leaked after the union government assigned the task of conducting exams to the National Testing Agency,” the statement said.
Calling for sweeping reforms, the CPI(M) demanded that the NTA be “disbanded immediately” and advocated decentralising the examination process by restoring responsibility to concerned government agencies, as was the system earlier.
The demand comes amid mounting political and public outrage over the cancellation of the NEET-UG 2026 examination held on May 3. The NTA had earlier announced that the examination was being scrapped after investigative agencies indicated that the integrity of the examination process had been compromised due to an alleged paper leak.
The controversy is currently under investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation after the Centre transferred the probe from Rajasthan Police. Investigators are examining allegations that a “guess paper” circulated before the examination closely resembled the actual question paper and may have been distributed through organised networks linked to coaching centres, hostel operators and intermediaries across multiple states.
The CPI(M) further demanded a comprehensive investigation into the matter and sought stringent action against all those involved in compromising the examination process.
“The CPI(M) demands the Union government to conduct a comprehensive enquiry into the leak, ensure strict punishment to those responsible and immediately put measures into place so that the affected students’ future is not put into jeopardy,” the statement added.
The NEET controversy has triggered sharp political reactions across the Opposition spectrum, with several parties accusing the BJP-led Centre of failing to prevent repeated examination leaks and administrative lapses in national recruitment and entrance tests. The government, however, has maintained that strict action is being initiated against those responsible and has defended the cancellation of the examination as necessary to preserve the credibility of the selection process.