Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday stepped up his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the ongoing NEET paper leak protests, alleging that while the government had shut down metro stations, roads, shops, internet services and even food supplies to curb the agitation, it had failed to stop paper leaks
In a post on X, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha stated that the government had taken "cruel" measures against students demanding their rights.
"Shut down the metro. Block the roads. Close the shops. Cut off the internet. Stop the food supply. The government took these cruel measures against students simply demanding their rights. You could shut everything down, Modi Ji--except for one thing: paper leaks," he wrote.
Earlier, Rahul Gandhi slammed the "brutality" of the Centre and the Delhi Police during the July 20 student protests in the national capital. He noted that in the current era, children protesting for their rights receive "pellets" instead of "justice."
In another post on X, Rahul Gandhi shared a video featuring a youth who was reportedly injured by the Delhi Police during Monday's protests against paper leaks:
"Sahil was standing with the Tricolour in his hand, merely asking for a clean, fair exam and the fruit of his hard work--the police raised a gun and badly injured him by firing pellets. This is not British tyranny; it is the brutality of the Modi government in independent India--where innocent students demanding their rights receive pellets instead of justice," the post read.
More than 118 police personnel sustained injuries during the clashes, including senior officers holding the ranks of Special Commissioner of Police, Joint Commissioner of Police, Additional Commissioner of Police, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, and Assistant Commissioner of Police, along with several female police personnel. Around 60 protesters were also reported to have been injured during the scuffle.
On Friday, the Union Cabinet approved amendments to the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, to strengthen anti-paper leak laws amid continuing nationwide protests over the NEET-UG row, while parliamentary deadlock continued for the fifth consecutive day. According to sources, the proposed amendment Bill is likely to be tabled in Parliament on Monday, July 27.
This development follows a late-night video message on X by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who promised "stricter" action against paper leaks as protests led by the Cockroach Janata Party continue. In the video, the Prime Minister announced that the Union Cabinet would take up a draft Bill.
Meanwhile, social activist Sonam Wangchuk ended his 26-day hunger strike at Medanta Hospital in the presence of Union Ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh after receiving a written assurance from the Union Government regarding the NEET examination issue and systemic reforms in the country's competitive testing framework.
(With inputs from ANI)
