Asserts won’t allow anyone to play with future of youth
New Delhi, Jul 21 : In his first remarks on NEET irregularities after protesters stormed the heart of Delhi over the raging issue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday asserted that strong action was taken against those involved in the “grave sin” of paper leaks so that no one plays with the future of the youth.
Modi said all state governments and the Centre must join hands on the issue as it is “not a matter of party politics but a matter of national interest”. He also told NDA MPs that they should remain closely connected with the people with “warmth and affection” and the “trust of the youth” needed to be won.
The comments are seen as an apparent effort to assuage the youth after thousands converged to participate in a march to Parliament on Monday called by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on the first day of the Monsoon session to push for the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET fiasco, only to be pushed back by lathis and teargas shells.
Briefing journalists after a meeting of the NDA Parliamentary Party, which was named ‘Mangal Milan’ since it is held mostly on Tuesdays, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the prime minister told the MPs that the government acted immediately after reports of the paper leak surfaced, and 13 people were arrested and sent to jail.
“At the same time, the prime minister noted, to ensure that students’ future was not affected, the NEET re-examination was given priority, conducted successfully, and the results were declared without delay,” Rijiju said after the hour-long meeting.
The prime minister termed as “ghor paap (grave sin)” the incident of paper leaks of the NEET examination, which was conducted for admission into undergraduate courses in medical colleges, sources said.
Rijiju told reporters the prime minister also said that strict steps have been taken to prevent such paper leaks in the future.
“The prime minister said strong action has been taken to ensure that no one plays with the future of youth. The prime minister also said that to ensure that no future paper leaks take place, all state governments and the Centre must join hands irrespective of party. This is not a matter of party politics but a matter of national interest,” Rijiju said.
Modi, sources said, conveyed clearly that there should be no injustice to students and suggested that it was easy to misguide them but difficult to show them the right path.
