The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports will on 21 May take up the investigation into the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak, scrutinising the Central Bureau of Investigation's progress and debating long-pending reforms at the National Testing Agency (NTA), according to a Rajya Sabha circular issued on Monday, 18 May. The high-stakes meeting is expected to be contentious, with Opposition members pressing hard on the slow implementation of the K. Radhakrishnan Committee report on NTA overhaul.

What the Committee Will Examine

The 29-member panel, chaired by Rajya Sabha Congress member Digvijaya Singh, is set to convene at 11 am in Committee Room-3 of the Parliament Annexe Extension Building. On the agenda: grilling NTA chief Pradeep Kumar Joshi and Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi on the now-cancelled NEET-UG 2026 paper, the arrangements for the re-examination scheduled on 21 June, and new safeguards to prevent a recurrence.

CBI Arrests So Far

The CBI has so far arrested 10 accused in the current paper leak case, with detentions spanning Delhi, Jaipur, Gurugram, Nasik, Pune, Latur, and Ahliyanagar. Despite the multi-city sweep, Opposition members have described the probe's pace as inadequate given the scale of disruption — the leak effectively nullified the entrance exam for lakhs of medical aspirants across the country.

Privilege Notice Against Education Minister

In a parallel development, Congress MP and former Union Minister Jairam Ramesh on 18 May filed a privilege notice against Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, accusing him of making 'derogatory references' to parliamentary committees while publicly addressing the NEET-UG fiasco.

'I have given notice of question of privilege under Rule 187 of Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Council of States against the Union Minister of Education for having lowered the dignity of Parliament and Parliamentary Committees,' Ramesh said in a post on social media.

In a letter dated 18 May addressed to Rajya Sabha Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan, Ramesh described the minister's conduct as 'a grave breach of privilege and contempt of the House,' adding that it was 'a fit case for action' given that the Standing Committee on Education is one of the eight standing committees of the Rajya Sabha. Ramesh further alleged that Pradhan had made these remarks 'while presiding over the rot in the Education Ministry that is destroying the future of lakhs of youth across the country.'

Supreme Court Petition for CBT Mode

A fresh petition has also been filed before the Supreme Court seeking an immediate transition of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET-UG) to a Computer-Based Test (CBT) format. The petition was moved by RJD MP Sudhakar Singh, social activist Anubhav Garg, Dr Dhruv Chauhan — National Spokesperson of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) — and political leader Harisharan Devgan, through advocate Satyam Singh Rajput and advocate-on-record Neema, supported by a legal team comprising Muskan Singh and Adarsh Singh.

What the Government Has Announced

Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has already announced a major structural reform: NEET-UG will shift to a computer-based format from next year. This pivot, if implemented, would address one of the primary vulnerabilities that allowed physical paper leaks to occur. However, critics argue that the announcement lacks a detailed rollout plan, and the Radhakrishnan Committee's broader reform blueprint remains only partially acted upon. With the re-exam set for 21 June and the parliamentary review imminent, the coming weeks will be decisive for the credibility of India's premier medical entrance process.