Kamal Haasan Slams Unjust NEET UG 2026 Cancellation, Calls To Protect Students From “Mafia”
The cancellation of the NEET UG 2026 exam has sent shockwaves across the nation, and Kamal Haasan is not holding back.
On Tuesday, the National Testing Agency (NTA) officially scrapped the NEET (UG) 2026 entrance exam – originally held on May 3 – citing severe allegations of paper leaks and irregularities originating from multiple centres. The drastic move, which the NTA stated was taken in the "interest of students" to maintain systemic transparency, affects nearly 23 lakh registered candidates who took the test across 551 cities in India and 14 cities abroad. Stepping up to bat for the devastated youth, veteran actor-politician Kamal Haasan took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his absolute outrage.
Writing in Tamil, Kamal Haasan delivered a hard-hitting statement regarding the disaster. "The hard work and dreams of 22 lakh students who studied day and night for the NEET entrance exam have been shattered by criminal conspiracies. Who will take responsibility for this mental agony?" Haasan wrote. He fiercely dubbed the systemic failures as the work of criminal gangs, concluding, "Indian students must be protected from this unjust NEET exam and the mafia operating behind it."
நீட் நுழைவுத் தேர்வுக்காக இரவு பகலாகப் படித்த 22 லட்சம் மாணவர்களின் உழைப்பும் கனவும் குற்றக்கும்பல்களால் சிதைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. இந்த மன உளைச்சலுக்குப் பொறுப்பேற்கப் போவது யார்?
— Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) May 12, 2026
இதுவரை ஒரு நீட் தேர்வு கூட முறைகேடு புகார்கள் இல்லாமல் நடந்ததாக எனக்கு நினைவில்லை. இதனால்தான் கல்வியை…
For Kamal Haasan, this is the boiling point of a much larger, ongoing issue. He pointed out the recurring controversies surrounding the nationwide medical test, stating, “To date, I don’t recall even a single NEET exam being conducted without allegations of malpractices. That’s why we are fighting to bring education back under the state list.”
His viral post resonated massively online. While some netizens demanded strict measures against the miscreants destroying students' futures, others argued that the examination should be scrapped entirely, advocating for candidate selection based on 12th-grade marks. Haasan’s stance echoes Tamil Nadu's historical precedent; the state had abolished medical entrance tests for nearly a decade, opting for Class 12 marks – an exemption famously supported by former President APJ Abdul Kalam during the UPA regime.
Kamal Haasan has been a prominent voice against the exam for years. During the 15th-anniversary celebrations of actor Suriya's Agaram Foundation in August 2025, he pointed out that NEET has denied education to countless children from marginalized communities since 2017.
He powerfully stated that education is "the chisel that can sculpt the nation," urging the public to hold together against "majoritarian idiots." He also invoked the term "Sanatana ideology" as a chain that needs breaking, aligning with intense political discourses that peaked when Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin drew national ire in 2023 for equating Sanatana Dharma to a disease.
Meanwhile, the fallout from the 2026 cancellation continues to unfold. The Government of India has directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to launch a comprehensive inquiry into the organized networks behind the leaks. Medical bodies like the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) are demanding strict accountability, and students have begun protesting, with the National Students Union of India (NSUI) holding placards and raising slogans on the streets of Delhi.
While the NTA has confirmed that a re-examination will take place on a yet-to-be-announced date, Kamal Haasan continues to balance his fierce political advocacy with a packed entertainment schedule. Having taken oath as a Rajya Sabha member in July 2025, the superstar is still dominating the cinematic front. He will next be seen in the upcoming film ‘Seyon’, is slated to share screen space with Rajinikanth in the highly anticipated ‘Thalaivar 173’, and is actively working on his 237th feature film.
