New Delhi: The National Testing Agency (NTA) has issued a warning to students and parents after finding fake and AI-generated OMR sheets submitted during the scrutiny of complaints related to national entrance examinations, including NEET. The advisory comes amid the ongoing NEET controversy, with the agency saying it is carefully verifying all complaints related to exam results and answer sheet verification. During the scrutiny process, some OMR sheets were found to be fake or created using artificial intelligence (AI) tools to resemble original documents.
The advisory comes after the NEET (UG) 2026 results were declared on July 16. Since then, some candidates have claimed that the OMR answer sheets uploaded by the NTA do not match the answers they marked in the exam. The agency said it has carefully checked every complaint received so far and found that its official records match the original OMR answer sheets kept by the NTA.
The agency said that in several complaints, candidates or persons acting on their behalf submitted images of OMR sheets or scorecards claiming them to be the “correct” documents. However, forensic and record-based examination found these documents to be fabricated and not issued by the NTA.
According to the public notice, the agency has identified multiple methods which can be used to create fake documents. These include AI-based digital regeneration of the printed OMR sheet, changing a candidate’s name or other personal details, editing marks on scorecards and even creating fake candidate identities.
The NTA said such manipulated documents may look genuine, but they can be easily identified because every original OMR sheet and scorecard has unique barcodes, QR codes and other security details linked to the NTA’s official records and the National Informatics Centre (NIC).
The NTA said every original NEET UG 2026 OMR answer sheet contains the candidate’s correct roll number, test booklet details, barcode, name, signature, thumb impression and the invigilator’s signature. The agency said NEET 2026 results have been prepared only on the basis of these official records and the final answer key.
The NTA warned that creating, sharing or submitting fake NEET UG 2026 OMR sheets, scorecards or other exam documents is a punishable offence under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024. It said those found guilty may face legal action, including jail, fines, cancellation of their NEET 2026 candidature and a ban from appearing in future NTA examinations.
NTA cites Abhay Yadav case
The NTA also referred to the case of Abhay Yadav (Application No. 260411367191), whose claims regarding his NEET (UG) 2026 OMR answer sheet and result had circulated publicly. NTA has verified the official records and found that the genuine OMR answer sheet is available with the NTA and had also been emailed to the candidate at his registered email address during the OMR response key challenge window.
The agency said the candidate had publicly claimed that he left only five questions unanswered and should have scored 634 marks. However, as per the records with NTA, 44 out of 180 questions were left unattempted, and the OMR answer sheet and calculation sheet are fully consistent with each other. Based on this verification, the NTA said the candidate’s score of 164 marks stands as declared.
Regarding claims by Shri Abhay Yadav (App No. 260411367191) about his NEET (UG) 2026 OMR answer sheet and result:
NTA has verified the record.
The genuine OMR of the candidate is with NTA. It was also emailed to him at the registered e-mail address during the OMR Response Key…
— National Testing Agency (@NTA_Exams) July 20, 2026
The agency also said legal action will not be limited to candidates. Anyone involved in creating or supplying fake OMR sheets or scorecards be it individuals, coaching centres or consultants can also face action. The NTA said submitting fake NEET UG 2026 OMR sheets or scorecards will not lead to a re-check of marks, a change in the NEET 2026 result, or any admission benefit. Overall, the NEET result will be prepared using the original OMR sheet available in its records and will remain final.
At the same time, the NTA said candidates with genuine NEET UG 2026 concerns can still file a complaint through the official NTA helpdesk. They should mention their application number, roll number and the exact issue, and submit only those OMR sheets or documents that were issued by or downloaded from the official NTA portal.
