Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should address Parliament on the paper leaks issue instead of making a "one-sided Mann Ki Baat" outside the House.
Kharge's remarks came after Modi, in a video message on Thursday night, said the Union Cabinet would discuss the proposed legislation on Friday before introducing it in Parliament next week.
Reacting to the announcement, Kharge said, "Before coming to Parliament today, please dismiss Dharmendra Pradhan. First, apologise to the students and take strict action against those who ordered the use of batons and pellet guns to suppress the students' voices. Then we are ready for a detailed discussion on the education system."
"When Parliament is in session, the prime minister is required to make a statement on the floor of the House. He should not be delivering a one-sided 'Mann Ki Baat' outside Parliament," the Congress chief said in a post in Hindi on X.
In his address on Thursday, Modi said the Cabinet would deliberate on the proposed law before finalising its provisions.
"On Monday, when the second week of the Monsoon session of Parliament will begin, a bill will be brought with provisions for strong action against paper leaks and we will try to pass it as early as possible," he said.
The prime minister acknowledged that paper leaks had deeply affected lakhs of students and their families and said the government had acted swiftly after allegations of the NEET paper leak surfaced over two months ago.
"The guilty have been caught. They are now in jail. Our most significant responsibility was to ensure that the students did not lose a year. It was necessary to hold the examination immediately. By using all resources, the government ensured that 22 lakh students could attend the retest," Modi said.
Soon after the PM's address, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticised him for not addressing demands for Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation, saying Modi should not insult the intelligence of students with a "pathetic midnight video".
(With inputs from PTI)