Congress demands Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation over the NEET issue, citing 'moral responsibility' and a 'host of failures'. Opposition MPs protested by wearing black, while Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi were detained.
Congress Demands Education Minister's Resignation
Congress General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal on Wednesday demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET issue, questioning his "moral responsibility" to continue in office and alleging that the Centre had failed to protect the interests of students.
Speaking to ANI, Venugopal said Pradhan should step down in view of the controversy surrounding public examinations. "He didn't have any moral responsibility to continue as Education Minister. Who will listen to his words now? Where is the moral responsibility now of Dharmendra Pradhan? He has to resign for saving the children of this country," Venugopal Backing the party's demand, Congress General Secretary in-charge Communications Jairam Ramesh, in a post on X, launched a sharp attack on the Union Education Minister, alleging that the demand for his resignation was based on multiple failures during his tenure and not on a single issue.
"Mantri Pradhan is an indifferent, insensitive, incompetent, and inveterate liar like the Pradhan Mantri. At a time when he has disappointed the aspirations of millions of students, he refuses to resign and instead continues to demonstrate his unchecked arrogance and pettiness through social media posts," Ramesh said in his post.
He asserted that the Congress' demand for Pradhan's resignation was rooted in "a whole host of failures and corruption" that, according to him, had characterised the Minister's tenure. "The fact is that the call for his resignation is not premised on one issue but a whole host of failures and corruption that has characterised his tenure as Union Minister of Education," he said.
In his post, Ramesh cited alleged repeated failures of the National Testing Agency (NTA), including paper leaks and examination cancellations, alleged irregularities in the procurement of the CBSE's On Screen Marking System (OSM), appointments of Vice Chancellors in Central Universities, and alleged corruption in autonomous institutions under the Education Ministry, including the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), the University Grants Commission (UGC), and the Indian Council for Historical Research (ICHR). Describing these allegations as "the tip of the iceberg," Ramesh said there would be "a proper accounting" of Pradhan's record as Union Education Minister.
Opposition Intensifies Protest
Meanwhile, opposition parties on Wednesday intensified their protest against the central government over the alleged manhandling of students and lawmakers by security forces during recent demonstrations. Members of various opposition outfits have decided to register their dissent by sporting black attire within the Parliament premises, signalling a unified stand against the government's handling of recent academic unrest and administrative high-handedness.
Speaking to ANI, Congress MP Syed Naseer Hussain said, "All MPs of the Opposition parties will come dressed in 'black' clothes today and observe a 'Black Day' in protest over the use of police against the students and the MPs. We want the government to have dialogue with the students and do an overhaul of the education system."
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said, "There is a limit to shamelessness. A lathi charge happened on 20 July, and yesterday we protested, so if a lathi charge was used against students... People without name tags enter, and attack, and the LoP or the opposition just remains seated and does not raise our voice?... You are saying that we are misusing the emotions of the students..."
Leaders Detained During Delhi Protest
Earlier on Tuesday, Congress workers and local leaders staged protests across several states on against the detention of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other party leaders in Delhi, while also condemning the police action against CJP activists during their protest on Monday.
Demonstrations were held in Thiruvananthapuram, Guwahati, Jabalpur and Bhubaneswar, where Congress workers raised slogans against the Centre and ccused the government of suppressing democratic protests. Earlier on Tuesday, Congress leaders marched from Rajaji Marg towards Lok Kalyan Marg, demanding accountability over the alleged examination paper leak, action over the police crackdown on student protesters, and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Meanwhile, Congress MPs Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, along with several other leaders, were detained by Delhi Police over the party's protest at Lok Kalyan Marg and were later released from detention. Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and several opposition leaders left from Chhatrasal Stadium, where they were brought under detention by the police.
As police detained the protesters, Priyanka Gandhi criticised the government's actions. "They are cowards. They are scared. We are not scared of them. They are scared of us," she told ANI while being taken into police custody.
Police personnel were seen carrying Rahul Gandhi towards a police bus as security forces dispersed demonstrators gathered near Lok Kalyan Marg. Several Congress MPs and party workers were also detained during the protest.
Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi reached the Mandir Marg Police Station, where Priyanka Gandhi was detained. Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, KC Venugopal and Pawan Khera protested at Lok Kalyan Marg.
Keralam Chief Minister VD Satheesan and Karnataka CM DK Shivakumar also joined the protest.
The whole fiasco came after the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP)'s 'Sansad Chalo' protest on Monday, which was met with police action in Central Delhi (ANI)
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)