Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addressed the ongoing controversy surrounding the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), accusing BJP-ruled states of being the "epicenter of paper leak" incidents.
In a recent post on X (formerly Twitter), he also criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi for remaining silent on the issue, which affects over 2.4 million students.
Gandhi's post emphasized the need for a united Opposition to address such issues, promising to advocate for the youth both in the streets and in Parliament. "Narendra Modi, as usual, is maintaining silence on the tampering with the future of more than 24 lakh students in the NEET examination," Gandhi wrote.
The DMK, Tamil Nadu's ruling party, has already expressed strong opposition to NEET, arguing that it discriminates against rural students who lack access to expensive coaching centers. They have demanded that government medical colleges in Tamil Nadu be exempted from NEET.
In Delhi, the Aam Aadmi Party, led by Arvind Kejriwal, showed solidarity with protesting students at Jantar Mantar and announced plans to raise the issue in Parliament.
Defending the government, Jitan Ram Manjhi, the Minister for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises, acknowledged the NEET paper leak but emphasized that investigations are underway and that the government is committed to eradicating such issues. "This is not about BJP versus Congress and Opposition alliance. It is true that NEET paper has been leaked. Similar things happened in Bihar also. But complaints have been registered and investigations are on... The government is determined to eradicate such things," he stated.
The NEET controversy has been ongoing since June 4, coinciding with the declaration of the Lok Sabha election results. Allegations have surfaced regarding multiple perfect scores and other irregularities, including the awarding of extra grace marks. Students have demanded that the exam be rescheduled for all, not just the 1,500 students who received grace marks.
The Supreme Court has also criticized the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts NEET, urging them to address any mistakes openly and take corrective action. "If there's even 0.001% negligence on anyone's part, it should be thoroughly dealt with," the court stated, emphasizing the need for the NTA to maintain fairness and inspire confidence in its examination processes.