Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has criticised the National Testing Agency after it announced a re-examination for UGC-NET papers in English, Commerce and Sociology, saying students should not have to bear the consequences of errors made by the testing agency.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday stepped up his criticism of the government and the National Testing Agency (NTA) after the agency announced a fresh examination for three subjects under the University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET).
The NTA said the UGC-NET examinations for English, Commerce and Sociology would be conducted again after a review panel identified factual, typographical and translation errors in the question papers. The panel also found that some questions had been repeated from previous examinations.
The decision is expected to affect more than 20,000 candidates, who will now have to appear for the examination again.
Rahul Gandhi questions NTA accountability
Reacting to the development, Gandhi questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and demanded accountability from the NTA.
In a post on X, the Congress leader said candidates had spent years preparing for the examination, paid application fees and travelled to examination centres, only to be asked to repeat the process because of errors in the question papers.
He argued that students were being forced to pay the price for mistakes made by the examination agency.
Gandhi also questioned whether there had been any investigation into the possibility of the papers being leaked before the examination.
‘Student serves the sentence’
Gandhi accused the examination system of becoming an “extraction machine”, alleging that it takes students’ money, time and confidence without providing adequate accountability.
He also criticised the government’s handling of examination irregularities, saying the NTA had failed to accept responsibility for mistakes.
Gandhi further said students appearing for the re-examination were not responsible for the situation and vowed that his party would continue to demand answers from the government.
Opposition leaders demand action
Congress leader Sachin Pilot also criticised the NTA over the UGC-NET controversy.
Pilot questioned whether the agency could conduct examinations in a fair and reliable manner, arguing that students continue to bear the consequences of alleged administrative failures.
AAP leader Manish Sisodia went a step further, calling for the NTA to be shut down and describing the controversy as a “massive fraud”.
Why is UGC-NET being conducted again?
The NTA announced the re-examination after an expert panel examined complaints concerning the English, Commerce and Sociology papers.
According to the agency, the review identified factual, typographical and translation errors, besides instances where questions had been repeated from earlier examinations.
The fresh examination comes amid continuing scrutiny of the NTA’s handling of major competitive examinations.
What is UGC-NET?
UGC-NET is conducted to determine eligibility for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), assistant professor positions and PhD admissions.
The examination is generally conducted twice a year, in June and December.
The latest controversy has once again put the spotlight on examination management and accountability, with opposition parties demanding answers from both the NTA and the education ministry.
