It took weeks of sustained student protests and relentless pressure from the Opposition, both inside and outside Parliament, before Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally responded to the NEET paper leak controversy. His announcement that fast-track courts would be set up to ensure swift punishment of those involved in examination leaks was presented as a decisive intervention. By the time the assurance came, it had done little to calm the anger of students who felt the government had acted only after the crisis had snowballed into a national political issue.

What the government appears to have underestimated is a familiar pattern in mass movements. They rarely remain confined to the issue that gives birth to them. A movement begins with one grievance, but if that is not addressed convincingly, it gradually grows into a larger indictment of the system itself. What began as outrage over a compromised examination has now evolved into a broader challenge to the government’s credibility among India’s youth.

The immediate trigger was the alleged leak of the NEET-UG 2026 question paper. For lakhs of students who had invested years preparing for one of the country's toughest examinations, the controversy struck at the very idea of merit. Their demand was simple: ensure a fair........

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