Hyderabad

A. Revanth Reddy on Thursday called for a transparent, time-bound investigation into the alleged leak of the NEET-UG 2026 question paper, urging the Centre and the National Testing Agency to restore confidence in the country’s examination system.

In a statement posted on social media, the Telangana chief minister said the cancellation of NEET-UG 2026 had caused immense distress and uncertainty for lakhs of students and their families across the country.

Reddy said nearly 22.79 lakh candidates who appeared for the examination on May 3 across 551 cities in India and 14 international centres were now facing renewed anxiety because of the alleged paper leak and reported irregularities in the examination process.

Calling for immediate corrective action, he demanded stronger safeguards, advanced technological protections and institutional accountability to ensure that such incidents are never repeated.

“The credibility of national examinations must be protected at all costs,” he said, adding that individuals or organised networks involved in paper leaks or exam-related corruption should face the strictest possible action, regardless of their influence or position.

The chief minister also alleged similarities between the failures of the BJP and the BRS in handling examination integrity, referencing earlier question paper leak controversies during the tenure of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi government.

Emphasising the emotional, academic and financial burden borne by aspirants, Reddy said competitive examinations must remain instruments of merit and opportunity, not sources of uncertainty.

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He further assured that the Telangana government would continue to support affected students and their families in every possible way.