Madhya Pradesh minister Kailash Vijayvargiya claimed that Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation thwarted attempts by "foreign forces" to destabilise India through violence, while asserting that the former minister had been ready to step down from the very first day of the student agitation.
Pradhan resigned on Saturday, following which the Cockroach Janta Party called off its 36-day agitation over alleged irregularities in exams and the NEET paper leak.
Addressing reporters in Indore, Vijayvargiya said, "Pradhan's resignation has foiled the designs of those foreign forces that wanted to destabilise India by spreading violence, as happened in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. I congratulate Pradhan for what he has done."
He further said Pradhan discharged every responsibility assigned to him with honesty and dedication.
"On the first day, as soon as the student agitation began, Pradhan had told the BJP president that if he felt it was necessary, he was ready to resign as education minister," Vijayvargiya said.
According to him, the BJP president asked Pradhan not to resign at the time, saying no decision had been taken and that he should neither submit his resignation nor discuss the matter with anyone.
"Later, when circumstances changed and the party decided that Pradhan should step down, he resigned immediately," Vijayvargiya added.
Targeting the Congress over its celebration following Pradhan's resignation, Vijayvargiya used a Hindi proverb to say the Opposition party was "beating drums over the birth of a child in a neighbour's house".
"What role did the Congress play in the student agitation? The students launched the agitation and the Congress merely stood behind them. After the West Bengal assembly election, the Opposition became completely demoralised and, in that state of despair, found a ray of hope in the Cockroach Janata Party," he claimed.
The BJP leader also questioned whether any Congress leader had faced police action during the student agitation.
Responding to Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's allegation that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) had acted like "termites" and hollowed out the country's education system, Vijayvargiya said, "I feel very sorry for Rahul Gandhi's political ideology and his intellect. I think he still needs to understand what the RSS is."
He added that the country was moving in the right direction and credited the RSS for its contribution.
(With inputs from PTI)
