Pradhan Accuses Congress of Exploiting Students During NEET Protest, Calls for Parliamentary Debate

Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Wednesday criticised the Congress party and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi for protesting outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence over the NEET paper leak issue. Pradhan accused them of 'exploiting students' for political gain.

Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and other Congress leaders and workers gathered near the PM's house on Tuesday afternoon to protest against the NEET paper leak and other examination irregularities, as well as what they termed as 'brutality' against students who participated in a march to Parliament organised by the Cockroach Janta Party on Monday.

The protest was dispersed around 6:30 pm, and the Gandhi siblings were detained. They were released around 9 pm.

Taking aim at Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, Pradhan—whose resignation has been one of the key demands of both the Congress and the Cockroach Janta Party—said they were shamelessly using students as political tools to 'manufacture disruption' during the Monsoon Session of Parliament. He added that the protest violated security protocols and caused inconvenience to the public.

Union Minister Jitendra Singh, who met Gandhi during the protest, said the Leader of the Opposition had indicated that the protest would be called off if a discussion on paper leaks was held in Parliament. Singh alleged that while the government agreed to the demand, Gandhi then added another condition.

Pradhan echoed similar sentiments. 'Even after Government conveyed its readiness for a comprehensive discussion, the Congress chose political spectacle over democratic debate. Their objective was never solutions for students, it was disruption for political headlines,' he wrote on X. 'For Rahul Gandhi, this is not about students. This is about manufacturing confrontation after every genuine avenue for discussion has been opened,' he added.

Pradhan emphasised that the Centre is committed to discussing NEET and addressing the concerns of students. 'The students of India deserve far better than being treated as props in a political campaign. They deserve certainty over chaos, solutions over slogans and responsibility over disruption. We owe our students more than outrage. We owe them answers, reforms and accountability. That is exactly what our government remains committed to delivering,' he said.