NEET protest: Patnaik slams police action, demands Minister's ouster

BJD President Naveen Patnaik condemned the police action against protesting students and Opposition leaders amid the NEET row. He called the violence 'shocking' and demanded the resignation of the Union Education Minister over the issue.

Patnaik Demands Minister's Resignation Over NEET Row

Biju Janata Dal President and Odisha LoP Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday condemned the police action against protesting students and the Opposition amid NEET protests, calling it "shocking" and demanding the resignation of the Education Minister over the handling of university examinations. Speaking to the media, Patnaik said protests would also be held in Odisha over the issue.

"There is an agitation all over the country about what has happened, which has shocked the entire nation. We will have agitations in Odisha as well. I was asked if the Minister of Education should resign; since his resignation has been asked for after what has been done regarding all these university exams, I think that he should resign," he said.

"Everyone is deeply shocked by the violence of the police on young students. The Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and many other senior politicians were also treated very roughly by the police. This is shocking," Patnaik asserted.

Widespread Opposition Protests

Congress MPs Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, along with several other opposition leaders, were detained following police action during the party's protest near Lok Kalyan Marg in Delhi. The Congress had demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

On July 20, Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) held a 'Sansad Chalo' protest in the national capital, which was met with police action. The Opposition leaders have strongly criticised the police action and alleged that the protestors were "lathi-charged" and met with tear gas.

Meanwhile, the Opposition MPs today held protests wearing black clothes against the government on the Parliament premises. The Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Priyanka Gandhi, among others, were present at the protest.

Delhi High Court Intervenes

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued notice to the Centre and the Delhi Police on three public interest litigations alleging excessive use of force by police during the July 20 protest march organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and directed the authorities to preserve CCTV footage and all other relevant electronic records relating to the incident.

A Division Bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia granted the respondents four weeks to file their replies and listed the matter for further hearing on September 11. The Court directed that CCTV footage and other relevant records be preserved in accordance with the applicable Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). (ANI)

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