IYC workers and Congress leaders, including Deepender Hooda, protested NEET exam irregularities at Haryana CM's residence in Kurukshetra. Police responded with water cannons and a lathi charge to disperse the demonstrators.
Police Use Water Cannons on Congress Protesters
High drama unfolded in Kurukshetra on Saturday as Indian Youth Congress (IYC) workers and senior Congress leaders attempted to gherao the residence of Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini. The demonstration, organised to protest against systemic irregularities and paper leaks in national examinations, was met with a heavy-handed police response, including the use of water cannons and a lathi charge to disperse the crowd.
The protest, led by senior Congress leader and Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda alongside IYC National President Uday Bhanu Chib, sought to escalate pressure on the central government regarding the integrity of the NEET and CBSE examination processes. Demonstrators, carrying banners and chanting slogans, attempted to breach the multi-layered security barricades placed outside the Chief Minister's residence. In response, police deployed anti-riot "Vajra" vehicles to fire water cannons at the protesters. As the situation grew increasingly tense, security forces also resorted to a lathi charge to push back the agitators.
IYC President Slams Centre
Addressing the media and his supporters, IYC President Uday Bhanu Chib launched a scathing attack on the Centre, accusing the administration of complicity in the examination crisis. "For money and greed, the nation is being sold. Until Prime Minister Narendra Modi takes action against this compromise, such movements will continue across the country," Chib stated. He further echoed Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's demand for the immediate sacking of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Hooda Defiant Amid Police Action
Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda remained defiant despite the police action. "If the government thinks these water cannons will break our morale, they are mistaken," Hooda declared. "The youth of this nation will not step back even an inch until Dharmendra Pradhan resigns and accountability is fixed for these repeated failures."
Digvijaya Singh Writes to PM Modi on Exam Irregularities
Meanwhile, Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Friday expressed concern over alleged irregularities and paper leak cases in competitive examinations, including NEET, in a letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking greater transparency from the government and investigative agencies.
In his letter, Singh called for the publication of a white paper detailing the status of such cases over the past eight years, along with complete updates on investigations, arrests, prosecutions, and case closures, stating that the lack of clear public information has contributed to confusion and anxiety among students. He said the cancellation of the NEET-UG 2026 examination had caused significant distress and "wreaked havoc" on the mental health of lakhs of aspirants, adding that a key concern among students is the absence of clarity on how previous paper leak cases have been investigated.
Quoting from his letter, Singh wrote, "Dear Shri Narendra Modi ji, I am writing to you to raise a very important concern which several students have relayed to me in the last few weeks. At a time when the cancellation of the NEET-UG 2026 examination has wreaked havoc on the mental health of lakhs of students, one critical stressor for them has been the lack of clarity on how previous paper leaks, etc., have been investigated." He further stated that there is currently no consolidated public record of paper leak and irregularity cases related to examinations conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), and how these cases have been investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and other central and state agencies. (ANI)
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