MP High Court Orders NEET UG 2025 Retest for Petitioners Affected by Power Outages in Indore, Ujjain

The relief, however, is limited to NEET UG 2025 students who had filed petitions before June 3, 2025, seeking redressal due to the disruption.

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has directed the National Testing Agency (NTA) to conduct a re-examination of NEET UG 2025 for candidates who faced power outages during the test at centres in Indore and Ujjain. The relief, however, is limited to students who had filed petitions before June 3, 2025, seeking redressal due to the disruption. The decision was delivered by Justice Subodh Abhyankar of the Indore bench, who stated that students affected by such infrastructural failures cannot be penalised for circumstances beyond their control.

The power outages occurred during the national-level medical entrance exam held on May 4, 2025. In Indore alone, at least 18 centres reported significant electricity failures, some lasting up to an hour. Ujjain saw similar issues across six centres, with interruptions lasting around 40 to 45 minutes. Several petitioners told the court they were forced to complete portions of their exam under torchlight or in dim conditions, with many alleging they lost crucial time and suffered undue stress. To understand the impact, the judge even demonstrated a dim-light scenario within the courtroom itself, pointing out that unlike courtrooms with large windows, many exam centres lacked sufficient natural light.

The NTA had earlier defended its stance by submitting data showing that students from the affected centres attempted a similar number of questions as others, and that 11 candidates from Indore even scored above 600 marks. However, the court ruled that performance data alone could not negate the unfairness of the situation. Acknowledging the psychological and physical discomfort caused by the power failure, the court said affected candidates deserve a fair chance through a fresh attempt.

The High Court had earlier, on May 15, stayed the declaration of results for students from 11 affected centres in Indore. It later allowed the NTA to release results for all other candidates. Now, with this ruling, the court has clarified that the results or counselling process for the petitioners will be subject to their performance in the re-test, which the NTA has been directed to organise. Importantly, the benefit of this order will not extend to students who filed their petitions after June 3.

This ruling is being seen as a significant step toward reinforcing fairness and transparency in national-level entrance examinations, especially in the wake of ongoing concerns about exam conduct, technical issues, and candidate welfare. Legal experts believe the judgment could have wider implications for handling exam-related grievances in future.

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