Traffic Snarls During Congress Event Affect NEET Re-Exam, Parties Trade Blame

Bengaluru witnessed a political row on Sunday after traffic congestion, caused by the installation ceremony of B.K. Hariprasad as Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president at Palace Grounds, reportedly affected the NEET re-examination at RC College. The ruling Congress and the opposition BJP exchanged sharp allegations over the incident.

Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya claimed that several students missed the re-examination due to the traffic snarls. However, the Congress refuted the claim, with Home Minister Priyank Kharge stating that out of 720 students scheduled to appear at RC College, 142 were absent. He clarified that only three students could not take the exam due to traffic-related issues: one female student from Magadi who could not get a bus on time, another who brought an admission ticket for the May 3 exam, and a third from R.T. Nagar whose reason is under investigation.

Kharge accused Surya of being a “serial misinformation provider” and pointed out that the BJP remained silent when 22 lakh students were affected by the NEET question paper leak. Leader of the Opposition R. Ashok blamed the Congress event for the congestion, saying it caused anxiety among NEET candidates and their parents.

B.K. Hariprasad acknowledged the traffic congestion and expressed regret if two or three students missed the examination. He offered to bear their losses and said his team would meet the affected students. He noted that all buses for the event had arrived by 10:30 a.m. and parking was arranged inside the venue to minimize inconvenience.

Hariprasad also cited high absenteeism in other districts—1,400 in Mysuru and 286 in Yadgir—questioning the BJP’s focus on the Bengaluru incident while ignoring the larger NEET paper leak issue and related suicides.