Student did not miss NEET due to Yoga Day traffic curbs, say Bengaluru police

Amid allegations blaming Bengaluru traffic restrictions, Home Minister Priyank Kharge had said the reason for the delay that led to the candidate arriving late for the NEET-UG retest was being ascertained.

Candidates enter a NEET re-examination centre in Thane on Sunday. (Express Photo by Deepak Joshi)

3 min readBengaluruJun 23, 2026 01:37 PM IST First published on: Jun 23, 2026 at 01:04 PM IST

The Bengaluru traffic police on Tuesday rejected claims that traffic congestion caused by an International Yoga Day event led to a NEET candidate missing the exam. They released a report based on an inquiry using CCTV footage, route analysis, and interactions with the candidate and her parents.

Allegations surfaced on social media and in sections of the media that traffic restrictions and congestion linked to a Yoga Day gathering in Bengaluru had delayed a National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) candidate, triggering widespread discussion, with many questioning the traffic management arrangements put in place for the event.

CCTV analysis and route verification have established that the NEET candidate reached the examination centre after the stipulated cutoff time. Traffic conditions were found to be normal, and traffic police personnel facilitated movement wherever required. The delay was primarily… pic.twitter.com/1bxQ7jgiKM

— ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು ಸಂಚಾರ ಪೊಲೀಸ್ BengaluruTrafficPolice (@blrcitytraffic) June 23, 2026

According to the police report, the candidate left her RT Nagar home at 12.57 pm on June 21, while the prescribed entry time for the examination centre, RC College, was 1.30 pm. She reached the examination centre area at 1.33 pm, three minutes late. CCTV footage and route analysis showed that she departed only 33 minutes before the prescribed time, the report said.

The police report further said the candidate took a longer route despite the availability of a shorter alternative that could have enabled quicker travel to the examination centre.

According to the report, traffic conditions across the route were largely normal, and there was no significant congestion attributable to the public event. Police personnel deployed along the route facilitated the candidate’s movement wherever necessary, the report stated.

“The delay was not caused by traffic congestion arising from the public event,” the report stated.

Three candidates missed NEET-UG retest at RC College

Earlier, Home Minister Priyank Kharge stated that of the 720 candidates allotted to the RC College examination centre, 142 were absent, and three missed the NEET-UG retest for different reasons. According to him, one student travelling from Magadi failed to reach the centre on time after being unable to secure transport, while another candidate was denied entry after arriving with an old hall ticket from the previous examination conducted on May 3, 2026.

Regarding the third candidate, who was travelling from the RT Nagar area, the minister said the exact reason for the delay was being ascertained. The allegations that traffic congestion prevented the candidate from reaching the centre on time prompted the police to conduct a detailed inquiry.

A day before the examination, the police issued an advisory warning of possible traffic disruptions due to International Yoga Day celebrations, marathons, and major political programmes held across Bengaluru. The advisory urged NEET candidates to plan their travel in advance and reach their examination centres well before the reporting time.