Archive · 5 Aug 2026
Students Expose Botched CBSE Marking and NEET Paper Leaks
Every year, millions of students in India take big exams that can decide their future.
Recently, two big problems happened: questions for NEET, a test to become a doctor, were leaked, and students found mistakes in their CBSE Class 12 marks.
One student, Vedant, saw his answer sheet and said the handwriting was not even his; the board later admitted the mistake and fixed his marks.
Other smart students started investigating how the exam board works.
One student, Sarthak, found that rules may have been changed to help one company, and another student, Nisarga, said he found security problems in the online marking system.
Thousands of students joined peaceful protests in Delhi to demand fair exams.
They say that if exams are not fair, then hard work does not matter.
Students want the system fixed so that honesty is guaranteed before a scandal happens, not just after.
The NEET paper leak affected approximately 23 lakh (2.3 million) aspiring doctors in India.
After CBSE Class 12 results were announced, students alleged major marking errors; Vedant Shrivastava's viral post showed a scanned answer sheet with handwriting that was not his own.
Nearly 9.8 million answer sheets were evaluated under the On-Screen Marking (OSM) system, which students say is flawed.
Student Sarthak Sidhant's investigation alleged CBSE rewrote tender rules to favor a particular firm, and his findings were presented before a parliamentary panel.
Ethical hacker Nisarga Adhikary said he hacked CBSE's OSM portal in February and reported vulnerabilities to CERT-in, and thousands of students joined CJP protests at Jantar Mantar.
- Who
- Indian students, including Vedant Shrivastava, Sarthak Sidhant, and Nisarga Adhikary, along with CBSE, NEET, and government authorities.
- What
- A NEET paper leak and widespread errors in CBSE Class 12 marking under the On-Screen Marking system sparked student investigations and protests.
- When
- Recently, after CBSE announced Class 12 results; Nisarga Adhikary said he hacked the OSM portal in February.
- Where
- India, including protests at Jantar Mantar and investigations by Sarthak Sidhant in Bokaro, Jharkhand.
- Why
- Students say the examination system lacked transparency and integrity, betraying their trust in merit and fair competition.
Students Demanding Systemic Reform
Government and Exam Boards
Scope of the problem
Students Demanding Systemic Reform
Students view the paper leak and marking errors as signs of a flawed, corrupt system that betrays their trust in merit.
Government and Exam Boards
The government has promised sweeping changes and to fix accountability, indicating the issues can be corrected through reform.
Response to the crisis
Students Demanding Systemic Reform
Students say damage control—cancelling papers, revising results, and resignations—is not enough; integrity must be guaranteed before a scandal.
Government and Exam Boards
Authorities have acknowledged mistakes, as CBSE revised Vedant Shrivastava's marks after admitting the error.
Student investigations and security
Students Demanding Systemic Reform
Students like Nisarga Adhikary say exposing vulnerabilities is exercising their rights and making institutions stronger.
Government and Exam Boards
The system is intended to ensure confidentiality and data protection; CERT-in received the reported vulnerabilities but was unable to patch most of them.
- NEET paper leak affected
- Approximately 23 lakh (2.3 million) aspiring doctors
- Answer sheets under OSM
- Nearly 9.8 million, evaluated via scanned sheets graded online
- Marking system
- On-Screen Marking (OSM)
- Student who exposed marking error
- Vedant Shrivastava, CBSE Class 12 student
- Tender investigation
- Sarthak Sidhant (18), from Bokaro, Jharkhand
- Ethical hacker
- Nisarga Adhikary, Class 12 student and cybersecurity researcher
- Protests
- CJP peaceful protests at Jantar Mantar, joined by thousands of students
- Records removed from CPP portal
- About 1 crore 66 lakh (16.6 million) records scrapped, per Sarthak's findings