Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday reiterated his demand for the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET-UG 2026 controversy. He stated that the Congress party would persist in its protest until a foolproof system is established to prevent future paper leaks.
Nationwide Protests by NSUI
These remarks come amid widespread demonstrations by the National Students' Union of India (NSUI) over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination and mounting political pressure on the central government regarding the cancellation of the medical entrance test.
In a post on social media platform X, the Congress leader accused the government of dodging accountability despite concerns over the future of lakhs of students. "When millions of youth are on the streets, the future of 22 lakh children is at stake, and the Prime Minister remains silent—then the government is not focused on responding, but on evading," Rahul Gandhi wrote. He added, "Until Dharmendra Pradhan resigns and a foolproof system is established to prevent paper leaks like NEET—we will not stop."
Rahul's comments came as NSUI workers held protests and 'Mashaal March' demonstrations across several parts of the country, demanding action over the alleged paper leak controversy. Addressing reporters during one such protest, NSUI National President Vinod Jakhar accused the BJP-led central government of failing to curb repeated paper leak incidents. "They are unable to stop the paper leak. The government is fooling the people of the country," Jakhar said. "The youth are on the streets today. Our clear demand is that the Education Minister should resign and take moral responsibility for this paper leak. We also demand an impartial investigation and a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe," he added.
Background of the Controversy
The controversy surrounding NEET-UG 2026 has intensified after officials from the National Testing Agency (NTA) informed the Parliamentary Standing Committee that the examination paper was not leaked in full and that only some questions had allegedly surfaced before the test. NTA Director General Abhishek Singh and Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi informed the committee that several reforms had already been implemented to strengthen the examination system, while additional measures were still being worked on.
Officials maintained that the alleged leak did not originate from the NTA system and said the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is currently probing the circulation of leaked questions that led to the cancellation of the examination.
Government Actions and Future Plans
The central government had cancelled the NEET-UG 2026 examination held on May 3 across 551 cities in India and 14 international centres after allegations of a paper leak emerged. More than 22 lakh candidates had appeared for the exam. Authorities later announced that the re-examination would be conducted on June 21 under enhanced security arrangements mandated by the Union Education Ministry.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee has also discussed proposals to shift NEET-UG to a computer-based testing format from next year in an attempt to prevent similar incidents in the future.
