Sikar, Rajasthan: In a case of suicide linked to the NEET-UG controversy, a 22-year-old aspirant from Rajasthan’s Jhunjhunu district was found dead at his room in Sikar on Friday, police said. The student had been staying in Sikar while preparing for the exam.
Family members said he had performed well in the exam and expected about 650 marks, but became distressed after the National Testing Agency (NTA) cancelled NEET-UG 2026 following allegations of a paper leak.
According to reports, the victim Pradeep Meghwal, a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Gudha Gaudji, had been living in Sikar with his two sisters for the past three years while preparing for the medical entrance exam at a private coaching institute.
Police said Pradeep hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister’s scarf. On Friday afternoon, his younger sister had gone to attend coaching classes while his elder sister was in the bathroom. “When she returned, she allegedly found Pradeep hanging from the ceiling fan. She immediately cut the scarf with scissors and alerted the landlord and police,” a police officer said.
Family members and the police rushed Pradeep to SK Hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead and his body was moved to the hospital mortuary.
Pradeep’s father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police his son had sat for the NEET-UG on May 3 and the family expected him to score about 650. They said Pradeep had been confident of winning a government medical seat this year. But after the National Testing Agency cancelled the exam amid allegations of a paper leak, the family said he went into a state of severe depression — which they believe forced him to take the extreme step.
NEET-UG is a 720-mark national medical entrance exam in Physics, Chemistry and Biology. The NTA cancelled the May 3 exam over allegations of a paper leak, disrupting the tests of over 22 lakh candidates. A re-exam is scheduled for June 21, and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has said the test will shift to a computer-based format next year.
Meahwhile, the Jhunjhunu death has renewed concerns about the fallout from the exam controversy.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot in a post on X, said: “The suicide of Pradeep, a student from Gudha Gaudji in Jhunjhunu district who was preparing for the NEET exam, is extremely heartbreaking. Similarly, reports of students’ suicides following incidents related to the NEET 2026 paper leak from Goa and Uttar Pradesh are deeply disturbing to the mind. I extend my deepest condolences to the grieving families who have lost their loved ones.”
