Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday called on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to apologize for his comments about the NEET-UG examination system after the Supreme Court refused to cancel the exam and hold a re-test. The court found no evidence of a “systemic breach” that compromised the exam’s integrity, despite allegations of paper leaks in a few locations.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court dismissed pleas to annul the NEET-UG exam, stating that the integrity of the exam remained intact. The court acknowledged the leaks but concluded they were isolated incidents, affecting only a couple of cities.
Following the verdict, BJP leader and former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad criticized Rahul Gandhi for undermining trust in India’s examination system. Prasad highlighted that Gandhi had labeled the entire examination process as fraudulent, despite the court’s findings.
“Will Rahul Gandhi apologize?” Prasad asked, noting that paper leaks were also common during Congress-led governments. He accused Gandhi of tarnishing India’s global reputation with his harsh criticisms of the exam system. Prasad further stated that Gandhi’s comments were disrespectful to Parliament and his role as Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
Prasad defended the government’s response to the NEET issue, emphasizing that the investigation was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and that the candidature of 155 examinees had been canceled. He pointed out that over 23.5 lakh students took the exam at 4,750 centers across 571 cities and highlighted the Modi government’s enactment of a strong law to prevent paper leaks.
Addressing Gandhi’s criticism of the 2024 budget as a “kursi bachao budget” (save the chair budget), Prasad remarked that it was not the BJP’s fault if the electorate repeatedly rejected Gandhi and his party.
On Wednesday, several Members of Parliament from the INDIA bloc, including Congress Parliamentary Party chief Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, LoP Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, and MPs from the Congress, TMC, Samajwadi Party, DMK, and the Left, held a protest against the alleged bias in the Union Budget against states governed by the opposition.
