New Delhi: On a day of some confusion over the “cancellation” of the NEET-UG counselling for admission to medical colleges, the Congress demanded that the exam conducted by the National Testing Agency be conducted again in view of all allegations of paper leak and other irregularities.
Through the earlier part of Saturday, there was a buzz and reports in the media that the counselling for the examination - which was conducted on May 5 and whose result was announced on June 4 – had been deferred. These reports took it for granted that the counselling was scheduled to begin on Saturday.
Congress Leader Jairam Ramesh On NEET-UG Issue
Since there were allegations of irregularities in the exam, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also latched on the charges and posted a tweet, saying:
“The whole NEET-UG issue is getting worse by the day. The nonbiological PM and his biological Education Minister are adding further proof to their demonstrated incompetence and insensitivity. The future of lakhs of our youth is simply unsafe in their hands."
Health Ministry Issues Clarification
However, late in the afternoon, the Health Ministry clarified that the dates for counselling had not been notified and so there was no question of cancellation.
All India Radio News put out a tweet saying, “Health Ministry clarifies that news of the deferment of #NEETUG counselling is incorrect as the date for counselling has not been notified yet.”
NTA Cancels UGC-NET Exam
The NTA had last month cancelled the UGC-NET examination after its papers were leaked on the dark web. It had also postponed the conduct of the NEET-PG examination. The new dates for these were subsequently announced.
As for NEET-UG, a fresh test was conducted on the directions of the Supreme Court for 1563 students who had been given grace marks. However, the Centre had refused to cancel the exam in toto and submitted before the apex court on Friday that it would not be rational to cancel it in the “absence of any proof of any large scale breach of confidentiality”. Over 2 million students appeared for this exam.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge's Demands
Meanwhile, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday demanded that the NEET-UG exam be reconducted and sought a thorough Supreme Court-monitored probe into the “paper leak scams”.
Kharge also took to ‘X’ and posted that “Modi Government has told the honourable Supreme Court that no paper has been leaked in NEET-UG”.
He charged that “this blatant lie is being told to lakhs of youth. Their future is being ruined.”
The Congress president also insisted that the Ministry of Education’s claim that “irregularities/cheating have taken place only in a few places” was “misleading”. He sought to make a political issue out of it by further charging that “BJP-RSS has promoted the education mafia by taking control of the entire education system. Be it NCERT books or leakage in exams – Modi government is bent on destroying our education system.”
Kharge has now demanded that “NEET-UG should be conducted again. It should be conducted online in a transparent manner.” He has also stated that “all paper leak scams should be thoroughly investigated under the supervision of the Supreme Court, and strict action should be taken against the culprits.”
PM Modi's Assurance To The Youth Of India
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recently assured of action against the culprits in Rajya Sabha. “I assure the youth of our country, this government will not spare those who cheat and scam you”, he had said, while lamenting that the issue was being “politicised, which is concerning for the country’s future”.
