NEET paper leak row: Congress demands resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan
On Saturday, May 16, 2026, the Congress demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET)-UG paper leak controversy and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi alleged that the scandal was a result of a “money-making racket” involving people linked to the ruling establishment.
In a video statement published on X, Mr. Gandhi claimed that the leaked NEET question paper was distributed on WhatsApp two days before the exam was held, destroying years of hard work of 22 lakh students. He also accused the Narendra Modi-led government of “evading” accountability.
“Prime Minister should immediately ask for Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation” ji or fire him. And those guilty of paper leaks should be in jail,” Mr. Gandhi said.
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“This is a nexus between people belonging to RSS [Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh]Vice-Chancellors of universities who owe their allegiance to the BJP and RSS. “This is a result of the bond of making money,” he added.
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Following the debate, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, citing reports of suicides by NEET aspirants, claimed that “Amrit Kaal” under the BJP government has proven to be “Mrit Kaal” (age of death) for students preparing for competitive exams.
“According to reports, several students committed suicide due to the trauma caused by the NEET paper leak scandal. Ritik Mishra from Lakhimpur Kheri, 20-year-old Anshika Pandey from Delhi, Jhunjhunu, Pradeep Meghwal from Rajasthan and a student from Bengaluru, a resident of Goa – all took this tragic, suicidal step,” Mr. Kharge said in a post on X.
Mr. Kharge claimed that more than 90 exam papers were leaked during the tenure of the Modi government, which adversely affected more than 90 million students and their families. He also accused the BJP of patronizing a “paper leak mafia” that was undermining the credibility of public examinations.
“The Union Education Minister should resign immediately,” Mr. Kharge added.
Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, also attacked the government, claiming that the Education Ministry’s “incompetence is matched only by the Minister’s arrogance”.
Sharing a media report on the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education’s recommendations on the National Testing Agency (NTA), Mr. Ramesh said the government had ignored repeated warnings about examination reforms.
“The Modi government’s educational ecosystem, full of third-rate academic mediocre individuals, has proven to be extremely incompetent, politicized and corrupt in the last few years,” he alleged.
Mr. Ramesh touched upon controversies ranging from NCERT textbook controversy to UGC’s draft regulations on Vice-Chancellor appointments, NAAC bribery scandal, ICHR controversy, vacancies in higher educational institutions and document leaks.
He also criticized Mr. Pradhan for allegedly rejecting the recommendations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education on the grounds that they included Opposition members.
“The Prime Minister takes great pride and promotes the annual Pariksha pe Charcha extravaganza in a big way. A ‘Pariksha ki Samiksha’ is what this hour needs.” [review of exam]. The Education Minister does not seem to be cut out for the job,” said Mr. Ramesh.
These remarks came a day after Mr. Pradhan announced that the NEET-UG re-examination will be held on June 21 and the medical entry examination will be conducted in computer-based format from next year as part of reforms following allegations of irregularities.
NEET-UG, held on May 3, was canceled following allegations of irregularities in the examination process.
In a post on
Mr. Pradhan announced on Friday, May 16, 2026, that the NEET-UG re-examination will be held on June 21 and said that the medical entrance exam will be computer-based from next year as part of the reforms due to allegations of irregularities in connection with it.
Addressing a press conference, Mr. Pradhan said the future of students remains the government’s top priority and added that there would be “zero tolerance” for any irregularities detected in the conduct of NEET-UG.
He said strict measures were taken.
The National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET)-Licensure exam held on May 3 was canceled following allegations of irregularities in the examination process.
It was published – 16 May 2026 19:06 IST
