A 19-year-old NEET aspirant died by suicide in Tamil Nadu’s Coimbatore district, triggering fresh protests against the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) and reigniting the state’s long-standing demand for exemption from the medical entrance examination.
Police identified the student as Anunkeerthana, who had already appeared for NEET twice and was preparing to take the examination again. Investigators say she was distressed over having to reappear for the test following the recent NEET question paper leak, which led to a re-test for affected candidates.
“The frustration of yet another test seems to have driven her,” a senior police officer told NDTV.
Police said no suicide note was recovered from the scene. An investigation is underway to determine the circumstances leading to her death.
The incident sparked protests in Coimbatore, with demonstrators demanding that NEET be scrapped. The ruling DMK has also announced a statewide protest, reiterating its demand for a NEET exemption for Tamil Nadu.
Tamil Nadu has consistently opposed NEET since its introduction, arguing that the examination disproportionately benefits students from affluent backgrounds who can afford expensive private coaching. The state government has maintained that the test places students from poor and rural families at a disadvantage despite strong performance in Class XII board examinations.
For nearly a decade before NEET was introduced, Tamil Nadu admitted medical students solely on the basis of Class XII marks, without any entrance examination. Supporters of the earlier system argue it improved access to medical education for students from government schools and rural areas.
The Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a bill seeking exemption from NEET, but it did not receive Presidential assent, leaving the national entrance examination in force in the state.
The latest tragedy has once again brought the emotional toll of the highly competitive examination into focus. According to activists and political parties opposing NEET, more than 20 aspirants in Tamil Nadu have died by suicide since the examination was introduced.
