BJP MP Nishikant Dubey on Saturday defended Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation as India’s education minister, saying the decision was not taken under any pressure but was a personal choice.
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Dubey said, “Dharmendra Pradhan did not resign under any pressure. He is a senior BJP leader who rose through the ranks of the ABVP and worked extensively in the education sector, bringing major changes such as the new education policy, universities, and examination systems. He took this decision on his own.”
He also urged parents to discourage their children from participating in such protests, saying, “I also appeal to parents not to push their children into such protests.”
Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned on Saturday, after weeks of massive student protests in Delhi seeking his resignation over exam irregularities, particularly the NEET-UG paper leak.
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He praised Pradhan’s long association with the education sector and highlighted his role in introducing major reforms, including the National Education Policy (NEP) and changes in the higher education and examination systems.
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Pradhan announced his resignation from the post on X. He said that he was taking the decision keeping the future of students in mind. “…To ensure that anti-national elements are not benefitted by the situation at Jantar Mantar and across the country, that the nation remains united, students in India do not get tangled in legal complexities and focus on their studies and their career, I have tendered my resignation to the Prime Minister…,” the letter reads.
The development comes a day after spokespersons from the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), the Abhijeet Dipke-led outfit that has been leading the protests, met union ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh.
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After the meeting, the CJP had said that the government had sought day’s time to decide on Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation.
The CJP ended its over a month-long protest on July 25, announcing that all of its demands have been accepted by the government. “Cockroach Janta Party withdraws its nationwide agitation with immediate effect. All demands of the Cockroach Janta Party have been accepted by the government,” the outfit said in a tweet.
Here are the three big demands that the government agreed to, according to the CJP:
-Maximum possible compensation for families of NEET paper leak-related suicides.
-All FIRs by Central govt and NDA-ruled states will be withdrawn, and no action will be taken against anyone involved in these protests in the future.
-CJP’s 5-point exam reform charter will be considered by the govt and the CJP will meet with the govt to discuss these reforms further.
The NEET paper leak had sparked massive outrage and questions against the government, given how a similar exam discrepancy occurred two years back too. What further fueled this fire was the multiple student suicides due to NEET re-exam anxiety.
