NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday sharpened his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the alleged NEET examination irregularities, saying students do not need the Prime Minister’s “forgiveness” and that it is the government that owes them “truth, justice and an apology”.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha made the remarks after meeting families of three Tamil Nadu medical aspirants—Gopika, Roshini and Vetri Anandan—who allegedly died by suicide following the NEET paper leak and the subsequent cancellation of the examination. Gandhi met the bereaved families during his visit to Tamil Nadu on Saturday and later shared a video of the interaction on Instagram.
Describing the meetings as deeply moving, Gandhi said each family was haunted by the same question: why honest and hardworking students should suffer because of a “dishonest system”. “A leaked paper led to a cancelled examination, a forced re-test and unbearable pressure on young minds. Behind every statistic is a child with a dream and a family living with an irreplaceable loss,” Gandhi said.
He asserted that the Congress’ fight was for an education system where merit is rewarded, examinations are conducted fairly and students are not forced to bear the consequences of institutional failures. “The Prime Minister speaks of ‘forgiving’ students. After listening to these parents, my conviction is even stronger: India’s students need no forgiveness. The government owes them truth, justice and an apology,” Gandhi said.
In a separate post on X, Gandhi said the grief of the affected families would remain lifelong and questioned the accountability of institutions responsible for conducting competitive examinations.
Meanwhile, Congress’’ media and publicity department head Pawan Khera also took a swipe at Modi’s remarks. Sharing the Prime Minister’s video on X, he said, “The country is asking him to apologise, yet he has forgiven the country.”
Pappu Yadav attacked
A man threw a slipper at MP Pappu Yadav during a press conference on Sunday. Police sources say that the man belongs to UP’s Bulandshahr.
