Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for the strictest possible punishment for those responsible for the NEET paper leak and emphasised that preventing such paper leaks was a national responsibility, Minister Kiren Rijiju said quoting the Prime Minister after the NDA Parliamentary Party’s ‘Mangal Milan’ meeting on Tuesday.
The Prime Minister, Rijiju said, urged for collective efforts to build a foolproof examination system.
“PM called on NDA partners to remain united in supporting legislative business and appealed to opposition parties to work constructively in Parliament, saying that while political differences may exist, all MPs have a shared responsibility to work for the country’s future and the welfare of its youth,” Rijiju said quoting the Prime Minister.
The comments come a day after thousands of protesters were tear-gassed and lathicharged and stopped from marching on parliament. The protesting students, led by the satirical Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which emerged in May after the Supreme Court Chief Justice compared some unemployed young people to “cockroaches” during an unrelated hearing, are demanding Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation following alleged irregularities in competitive examinations, including the NEET paper leak.
The National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) is one of the country’s most competitive exams, attracting more than two million aspiring doctors. The exam was scrapped in May following allegations that the question paper was leaked in advance. The re-test was conducted late last month.
The NEET scandal came on top of another controversy, related to the online marking system used for tests taken by nearly two million high school CBSE students. Many students said the system had assigned incorrect grades or issued results to the wrong candidates.
PM Modi said the government acted immediately after reports of NEET paper leak emerged, leading to arrests and swift action against those involved, Rijiju relayed.
Rijiju said the Prime Minister stressed that a re-examination was conducted without delay to ensure students’ futures were not affected.
The protest came after activist Sonam Wangchuk was forcibly taken to hospital on Saturday, bringing an abrupt end to his 21-day hunger strike in support of the movement launched by the CJP.
Wangchuk said later on Monday he would resume his hunger strike in hospital after seeing the “brutality with which peacefully protesting students are being dealt with”.
PM Modi did not mention the protesters in a public address before the start of the monsoon session of parliament yesterday.
