Madhya Pradesh HC orders NEET-UG retest for candidates affected by power cuts

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has ordered the National Testing Agency (NTA) to conduct a retest of NEET-UG for candidates affected by power cuts at exam centres, noting that they were placed at a disadvantage through no fault of their own.

The high court cited Article 14 of the Indian Constitution, which establishes the principle of equality and justice for all citizens, to give the petitioners relief.

The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET-UG) for admission to undergraduate courses in medicine was held on 4 May, when parts of the state faced a power outage due to bad weather.

Justice Subodh Abhyankar of the high court's Indore bench reserved his decision last month after hearing arguments from all concerned parties on the petitions of several NEET-UG candidates.

Speaking to PTI on Tuesday, the petitioners' lawyer, Mridul Bhatnagar, said that the court's June 23 order will benefit 75 affected candidates who appeared for NEET-UG amid power cuts at exam centres in Indore and Ujjain.

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The order stated that without any fault on their part, candidates were put into a disadvantageous position due to a power outage, which did not prevail in the other examination centre or even in the same centre where some students were sitting in favourable spots with sufficient natural light.

The court directed the NTA to conduct the examination as expeditiously as possible for the affected candidates and declare the results, making it clear that the petitioners' rank, based solely on their scores in the retest, should be considered.

"It is made clear that those persons who have filed the petition after the declaration of provisional answer key i.e., 3 June 2025, shall not be entitled to get any benefit of this order," the court held.

The petitioners argued that their performance in the entrance exam was affected by a power outage amid bad weather on 4 May, and they should be allowed to retake the test.

Pleading on behalf of the NTA, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta cited a committee report stating that alternate arrangements for power supply had been made in most examination centres and power supply was restored immediately after a complaint was made to the power distribution company.

Mehta had also submitted that candles, emergency lights, power backup and inverters were made at examination centres.