UGC-NET 2026: Rahul Gandhi questions NTA over cancellation of 3 papers

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday targeted the Modi government over the UGC-NET re-exam, and demanded that the National Testing Agency's leadership must be held accountable for it.

In a post on X, he alleged that "this is no longer an education system. It is an extraction machine".

"Modi ji, look at what your NTA has just done. UGC-NET exams for Sociology, English and Commerce were held between 22 and 30 June. Nearly two months later, NTA has cancelled all three because it set faulty papers and repeated old questions," he said.


Gandhi said thousands of candidates who prepared for years, filled forms, paid the fees, travelled to distant centres, must now do it all again in September.

"NTA makes the mistake but the student serves the sentence," he said.

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"I said this in Kota, in Dehradun, in Prayagraj, and I will keep saying it - this is no longer an education system. It is an extraction machine. It takes your money, your years, your mental health, and your confidence and returns nothing. Not even a job," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said.

"NTA still won't answer the real question - were these papers leaked before the exam?

"Just like every other arm of the Modi government, NTA never says it's their fault. Just like every other compromised paper, I am absolutely sure there will be no accountability," Gandhi also said.

The Congress leader said Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation was the first step, not the last. "NTA's leadership must be held accountable too," he demanded.

"To every student sitting this exam again in September - you are not the problem. PM Modi built a system that cannot run an exam and then blames the students who take it. Your years are being stolen and we will not stop until PM Modi answers for it," Gandhi said in his post.

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The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Sunday announced the retest for three papers of the UGC-NET June 2026 examination -- English, Commerce and Sociology -- following complaints about several errors in these papers.

The English paper will be held on September 9 from 9 am to 12 noon in Shift 1, while the Commerce paper will be conducted the same day from 3 pm to 6 pm in Shift 2.

The Sociology paper will be held on September 10 from 9 am to 12 noon in Shift 1.

The NTA conducted the UGC-NET June 2026 examination from June 22 to 30 across 87 subjects for the award of Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), eligibility for assistant professor, and admission to PhD programmes.

The Congress has been targeting the NTA ever since the NEET examination paper was leaked and the NTA conducted a re-exam.