IIT Roorkee, the organizing institute for JEE Advanced 2026, has strongly refuted allegations of widespread cheating during the examination, labeling viral data as 'fabricated' and misleading. The institute issued an official statement clarifying that no evidence of cheating, malpractice, data manipulation, or any compromise of the examination process has been found at any stage.
In a post on social media platform X, IIT Roorkee stated, 'It has come to the notice through some candidates and their parents that inaccurate and fabricated data purportedly showing candidate ranks, total marks, and inter-paper mark differentials for JEE (Advanced) 2026 are being widely circulated on the internet and across social media.' The institute urged candidates and the public to disregard such unverified information.
Social Media Allegations
Several posts on social media platforms had raised concerns about anomalies in candidate scores, citing extreme variations in marks between Paper 1 and Paper 2. For instance, one user claimed a student scored -3 in Paper 1 and 104 in Paper 2, despite both papers being conducted on the same day with the same syllabus. Another post alleged that 'Cracku score data reveals hundreds of students with extreme patterns: 120+ marks in one paper and 0 or negative marks in the other,' calling the exam 'compromised by cheating.'
Some candidates and parents demanded a delay in the Joint Seat Allocation Authority (JOSAA) counselling until the matter is resolved. However, IIT Roorkee has dismissed these claims as lacking statistical understanding.
Expert Clarification
Professor Manindra Agrawal of IIT Kanpur, a renowned computer scientist, addressed the concerns in a social media post, stating that such claims reflect a lack of understanding of basic statistics. 'When there are 60,000 students, some will have large gaps in marks for two papers. Chebyshev's inequality quantifies it. It has been the case in JEE Advanced since two papers were introduced,' he explained.
The controversy emerged after allegations that Paper 2 was rated harder this year, yet some students showed dramatic improvements. Critics noted a 2.5-hour gap between the end of Paper 1 at 12 PM and the start of Paper 2 at 2:30 PM, suggesting potential misuse of that window.
Institute's Stand
IIT Roorkee has maintained that the examination process was conducted with utmost integrity and that no irregularities were detected. The institute has advised candidates to rely only on official communications and not to be misled by unsubstantiated claims circulating online.
The JEE Advanced 2026 results remain valid, and JOSAA counselling is expected to proceed as scheduled. Candidates are encouraged to verify any information through official channels.
