New Delhi, July 22 (ANI): Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal on Wednesday demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET issue, questioning his moral authority to remain in office and alleging that the government had failed to protect the interests of students.
Speaking to ANI, Venugopal said Pradhan should step down in light of the controversy surrounding public examinations.
“He doesn’t have the moral right to continue as Education Minister. Who will listen to his words now? Where is Dharmendra Pradhan’s moral responsibility? He has to resign to protect the children of this country,” Venugopal said.
Supporting the party’s demand, Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh launched a sharp attack on the Union education minister in a post on X, alleging that the call for his resignation stemmed from multiple failures during his tenure rather than a single controversy.
“Mantri Pradhan is an indifferent, insensitive, incompetent, and inveterate liar like the Pradhan Mantri. At a time when he has disappointed the aspirations of millions of students, he refuses to resign and instead continues to demonstrate his unchecked arrogance and pettiness through social media posts,” Ramesh wrote.
He said the Congress’ demand for Pradhan’s resignation was based on what he described as “a whole host of failures and corruption” during his tenure.
“The fact is that the call for his resignation is not premised on one issue but a whole host of failures and corruption that has characterised his tenure as Union Minister of Education,” he said.
Ramesh cited alleged repeated failures by the National Testing Agency (NTA), including paper leaks and examination cancellations, alleged irregularities in the procurement of the Central Board of Secondary Education’s On-Screen Marking System (OSM), appointments of vice chancellors at central universities, and alleged corruption in autonomous institutions under the Education Ministry, including the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), the University Grants Commission (UGC), and the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR).
Describing these allegations as “the tip of the iceberg,” Ramesh said there would be “a proper accounting” of Pradhan’s tenure as education minister.
Meanwhile, opposition parties intensified their protest against the central government over the alleged manhandling of students and lawmakers by security personnel during recent demonstrations.
Members of several opposition parties decided to wear black clothing in Parliament to mark what they called a “Black Day” in protest against the government’s handling of the issue.
Speaking to ANI, Congress MP Syed Naseer Hussain said, “All MPs of the Opposition parties will come dressed in black today and observe a Black Day in protest over the use of police against the students and the MPs. We want the government to have dialogue with the students and do an overhaul of the education system.”
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari also criticized the government’s response.
“There is a limit to shamelessness. A lathi charge happened on July 20, and yesterday we protested. If a lathi charge is used against students, people without name tags enter and attack, should the Leader of the Opposition or the opposition remain silent? You are saying that we are misusing the emotions of the students,” he said.
On Tuesday, Congress workers and local leaders staged protests in several states against the detention of Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and other party leaders in New Delhi, while also condemning police action against CJP activists during Monday’s protest.
Demonstrations were held in Thiruvananthapuram, Guwahati, Jabalpur, and Bhubaneswar, where Congress workers raised slogans against the central government and accused it of suppressing democratic protests.
Earlier on Tuesday, Congress leaders marched from Rajaji Marg toward Lok Kalyan Marg, demanding accountability over the alleged examination paper leak, action against the police crackdown on student protesters, and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and several other Congress leaders were detained by Delhi Police during the protest at Lok Kalyan Marg and were later released.
Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, and several other opposition leaders later left Chhatrasal Stadium, where they had been taken into police custody.
As police detained the protesters, Priyanka Gandhi criticized the government’s actions.
“They are cowards. They are scared. We are not scared of them. They are scared of us,” she told ANI while being taken into custody.
Police personnel were seen carrying Rahul Gandhi toward a police bus as security forces dispersed demonstrators gathered near Lok Kalyan Marg. Several Congress MPs and party workers were also detained.
Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi later reached Mandir Marg Police Station, where Priyanka Gandhi had been detained.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, K.C. Venugopal, and Pawan Khera participated in the protest. Kerala Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar also joined the demonstration.
The protests followed the Cockroach Janata Party’s (CJP) “Sansad Chalo” demonstration on Monday, which was met with police action in central New Delhi. (ANI)
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