Opposition hits out at Modi government over UGC-NET cancellation
The Ministry of Education on Wednesday announced the cancellation of the June 2024 University Grants Commission-National Eligibility Test, citing concerns over the integrity of the examination. The exam was conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA). This move has led to a sharp response from the opposition bloc, including Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who criticized the government over alleged irregularities and mishandling of national examinations.
Defeat of arrogance of Modi government: Kharge
The Congress labeled the cancellation of the UGC-NET as a "defeat of the arrogance of the Modi government". In an X post, Kharge said, "Narendra Modiji, you do 'Pariksha pe charcha' a lot, when will you 'discuss NEET exam'? Cancellation of UGC-NET exam is a victory of the spirit of millions of students. This is the defeat of the arrogance of the Modi government due to which they made an attempt to trample on the future of our youth."
Kharge raises issues of NEET 'paper leaks'
Notably, this comes amid controversy surrounding NEET-UG 2024, another exam conducted by the NTA for undergraduate medical courses. In his post, Kharge also said, "Modi Ji, please take the responsibility to stop your government's rigging and paper leak in NEET exam too!" Separately, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to meet some NEET aspirants Thursday, and the party is expected to raise the issue in Parliament which starts from June 24.
Will accountability be fixed now, says Vadra
Congress General Secretary Vadra also hit out at the government. She said, "The laxity and corruption of the BJP government is fatal for the youth... Will accountability be fixed now? Will the education minister take responsibility?" Akhilesh Yadav, chief of the Samajwadi Party—a member of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance—said, "The UGC-NET exam has also been cancelled. Under the BJP rule, the paper mafia is rigging every exam, one after the other."
Shiv Sena (UBT) calls it 'education emergency'
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi alleged that the repeated failure to conduct national examinations exposes the NTA's incompetence. "This...lets down lakhs of students who diligently prepare for these entrance exams, not to forget the mental pressure they go through. Cancelling is not the solution, accountability from government and NTA is," she posted on X. Shiv Sena's Aaditya Thackeray said, "Education Emergency. However the central regime doesn't care about the lakhs of students. They're only focused on PR."
Investigation handed over to the CBI
To note, the NET-UGC exam was cancelled a day after over 9 lakh candidates appeared for it across 317 cities. With this, the UGC-NET, held for entry-level teaching jobs and PhD admissions, becomes the first centrally-conducted exam scrapped after the new anti-paper leak law. The MoE announced the investigation into the compromised inputs is being handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), with re-exam information to be shared separately.
