Let’s appeal to Supreme Court to postpone NEET, JEE: Mamata Banerjee to non-BJP chief ministers

This was the first time since the pandemic broke out that chief ministers of non-BJP ruled states spoke out against Central policies on a common platform

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday proposed that all non-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)- ruled states appeal to the Supreme Court to allow the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) to be postponed. As of now, they are scheduled to be held in September.

In consecutive appeals on Monday and Tuesday, Banerjee urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to postpone the examinations, saying students would be exposed to risk if they travelled during the Covid-19 pandemic. (PTI)

Banerjee made the statement at a virtual meeting, attended by chief ministers of non-BJP ruled states, that she and the Congress’ interim president Sonia Gandhi jointly convened. The meeting started at 2.30pm.

The agenda, however, was not restricted to the examinations alone. Gandhi, who opened the discussion, said that state governments were facing a lot of problems because of the Centre’s policies. She referred to the rise in fuel prices, disinvestment of PSUs, privatisation of airports and other issues.

This was the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out that chief ministers of non-BJP ruled states spoke out against Central government’s policies on a common platform.

Gandhi then let Banerjee conduct the meeting.

Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh, Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot and Puducherry chief minister V Narayanasamy attended the meeting. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan could not attend because of urgent business.

The Jharkhand chief minister said, “These days, the opposition appears to have become weak. We have to take a stand.”

Banerjee seconded the statement and said, “Yes, we must raise our voice. Otherwise other political parties will not exist.”

Thackeray also spoke on a number of issues and said the Centre had failed to deliver on many of its promises.

Amarinder Singh spoke at length on the lack of Central funds to combat the Covid-19 pandemic and said, “We should all go to the Prime Minister with our problems.”

Gehlot started speaking at 3.30 pm.

On Monday and Tuesday, Banerjee had urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to postpone the examinations, saying students would be exposed to risk if they travelled during the Covid-19 pandemic.