From Our Special Correspondent

Daijiworld Media Network

Raichuru, June 21:  Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil has mooted the scrapping of National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) conducted by National Testing Agency (NTA) for studying medical courses in India and abroad in Karnataka too as demanded by the neighbouring Tamil Nadu.

“The malpractices in this year’s NEET exam is a big scandal and the future of students cannot be sacrificed,” he said speaking to media persons in Raichuru on Friday.

Dr Sharan Prakash Patil demanded that the Narendra Modi regime must immediately refer the entire scandal to the CBI for a thorough court monitored investigation. Any delay or failure will lead to suspicion that the Centre wants to shield the culprits, he said.

The minister felt Karnataka too must follow the Tamil Nadu model to scrap NEET exam and said legal backing was necessary to go against the NTA. Karnataka had been successfully implementing Central Entrance Test (CET) for selecting the students for professional engineering and medical courses. The NEET system has removed medical courses from the CET, he said.

Even as the issue is being examined by the Supreme Court more and more details of the malpractices are tumbling out, he said and pointed out that the massive fraud in NEET exam conducted by NTA is the first of its kind as irregularities and malpractices were unprecedented.

NEET-UG and UGC-NET must be subjected to an impartial and fair investigation, he said and over 24 lakh students are facing uncertainty.

He said NEET exam is being conducted as per Central law and only the Supreme Court can direct the Centre to act and rescue students, he added.