Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Jitendra Singh on Tuesday accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of changing his demands during talks held at the Congress protest outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence, alleging that the Leader of Opposition backed away from his original position after the government agreed to a parliamentary discussion on the NEET issue.
The remarks came hours after Singh, accompanied by Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, met Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and other senior Congress leaders who had staged a dharna near Akbar Road, demanding accountability over alleged examination paper leaks and seeking the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Sharing details of the interaction in a post on X, Singh said the government had deputed him and the Home Secretary to engage with the Opposition leaders, considering the stature of the Congress leadership. He said Rahul Gandhi was requested to end the protest, as the location was not designated for demonstrations and was causing inconvenience to the public.
According to Singh, Rahul Gandhi initially said the protest would be withdrawn if the government agreed to hold a discussion in Parliament on NEET and all issues related to the student agitation. Singh claimed that after obtaining approval from the government's top leadership, Gandhi was informed that the Centre had accepted the demand and was ready for a parliamentary debate.
However, Singh alleged that Gandhi subsequently added a fresh condition, insisting that Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan must also resign before the protest could end.
"He said he now had two demands, discussion in Parliament and the Education Minister's resignation. When reminded that his initial demand was only for a discussion, he replied that his demands had changed," Singh said, adding that Gandhi also refused to vacate the protest site despite being told it was not meant for demonstrations.
The minister described Gandhi's alleged change in stand as "unfortunate" and "against democratic norms", while asserting that the government remained prepared to discuss NEET and all related issues in Parliament. He also claimed that the Congress had not submitted any formal notice seeking such a discussion.
Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi had appealed to citizens to join the Congress' dharna, saying, "An attack on students is an attack on every Indian family," and urging "every patriotic Indian" to participate in the protest outside the Prime Minister's residence, while accusing the Modi government of refusing to answer for the alleged crackdown on students.
