New Delhi: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi on Friday stepped up the attack on the NDA government over alleged irregularities in the NEET-UG medical entrance examinations and asked the Union Education Minister to shed his ‘arrogance’ and ‘ego’ and start taking steps for safeguarding the future of children.
“The BJP government should abandon its ego and think seriously about the future of youth and take steps to curb corruption in examinations,” the Congress leader said.
Priyanka Gandhi claimed that the newly elected government was attacking the dreams of the youth and added that Education Minister’s arrogant response to the irregularities in the NEET exam results ignored the cries and wails of 24 lakh students and their parents.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday met some students and their parents and sought to assuage their concerns over their future. He assured them no injustice would be done to them, while ruling out any paper leak as claimed by the Opposition.
The Congress leader lambasted the Centre over its ‘careless and callous’ approach in dealing with the future of youth and asked whom it was ‘trying to save’ by ignoring the desperate appeals of youth.
“Does the Education Minister not see the facts available in public domain? Does the government consider police actions in Bihar and Gujarat as false? Is it also a lie that 67 toppers have got full marks?” she posted on X.
Priyanka Gandhi demanded the government act responsibly, and pay heed to the complaints and take steps to address their grievances.
Other Congress leaders have also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led dispensation over its ‘silence’ while claiming that this has put the future of students in peril.
The NEET-UG examinations were held on May 5 and saw 24 lakh students appearing in it. The results were expected by June 14, but it was announced early on June 4.
Soon after the declaration of the results, a major controversy broke out over 67 students getting the same marks.
Allegations of question paper leaks in states like Bihar and other irregularities also surfaced.
The issue soon took a political turn with Opposition parties slamming the government for ‘failing to ensure fairness and integrity of the examination process’.
Meanwhile, the National Testing Agency (NTA), the nodal body for conducting competitive examinations, has denied any irregularities and stated that the changes in NCERT textbooks and grace marks were probably some of the reasons for some students scoring the highest marks.
–IANS