The Opposition on Monday launched an all-out attack on the government over the NEET-UG paper leak row and demanded the education minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation, with leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi questioning the Union minister's understanding about ongoing issue.
"It is obvious to the whole country that there is a very serious problem in our examination system, not just in NEET, but in all the major examinations. The minister (Dharmendra Pradhan) has blamed everybody except himself. I don't even think he understands the fundamentals of what is going on here," Rahul Gandhi said in the first of the Monsoon Session of Parliament.
The Congress MP also asked Dharmendra Pradhan, “As this (NEET) is a systematic issue, what exactly are you doing to fix this issue?”
Rahul Gandhi's statement in Lok Sabha drew a sharp reaction from the education minister.
"...A lie will not become truth just by shouting. The fact that the Leader of Opposition says that the country's examination system is rubbish, is highly condemnable," Dharmendra Pradhan hit back.
{{/usCountry}}"...A lie will not become truth just by shouting. The fact that the Leader of Opposition says that the country's examination system is rubbish, is highly condemnable," Dharmendra Pradhan hit back.
{{/usCountry}}Demanding Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation, Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav said, "This government will make a record of paper leaks... There are some centres where more than 2,000 students have passed. As long as this minister (education minister) is there, the students will not get justice."
Supreme Court hearing on NEET paper leak
The NEET paper leak issue was raised in Parliament even as the Supreme Court on Monday commenced hearing on a batch of petitions related to the controversy-ridden medical entrance exam.
The Supreme Court was told by a counsel for NEET-UG aspirants that the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the prestigious exam, has admitted to paper leak and the dissemination of the ‘leaked question paper’ through WhatsApp.
At the outset, the bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwla and Manoj Misra asked the counsel for the parties as to what emerged from the declaration of the centre-wise and city-wise results of the exam.
The hearing is underway.
An analysis of results released by NTA on Saturday indicated that the candidates who allegedly benefitted from the paper leak and other irregularities did not do well. Some centres, however, showed high concentration of well-performing students, it revealed.