Indian student protest group presses for education minister’s resignation over exam row
A student protest group has hardened its stance in New Delhi, telling two Union ministers that Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan must resign. The demand, it
A student protest group has hardened its stance in New Delhi, telling two Union ministers that Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan must resign. The demand, it said, is not open to compromise.
The Cockroach Janta Party also pressed for a public apology to students it said were beaten during protests on July 20, and sought compensation of ₹1 crore for families of people who died by suicide after the May 3 cancellation of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test, or NEET. The meeting underscored how an exam dispute has spilled into a broader political confrontation, with the government now facing calls not just for answers, but for accountability.
Delegation meets Nadda, Singh
A two-member CJP delegation met Union ministers J.P. Nadda and Jitendra Singh on Friday, July 24, in New Delhi, seeking what officials described as an amicable solution to the outfit’s demands over exam irregularities. The ministers and the party representatives discussed the row at Vithalbhai Patel House, a venue often used for political meetings in the capital.
The party’s spokespersons, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, represented the delegation. Their message was blunt. Pradhan’s resignation, they told the ministers, was “non-negotiable”. That line leaves little room for a face-saving compromise.
Apology and compensation demanded
The group also wants a public apology for students who it says were “brutally thrashed” on July 20 during the protests. The language sharpened the tone of the discussion and kept the focus on how the authorities handled the demonstrations, not just on the exam cancellation itself.
Along with the apology, the party demanded ₹1 crore compensation for families of those who died by suicide after NEET was cancelled on May 3. The demand ties the exam controversy to its most tragic fallout and raises the stakes for the government, which has so far been forced to manage both anger on the streets and pressure across political channels.
Pressure builds over exam fallout
NEET is one of India’s most closely watched entrance tests, and any disruption sends shockwaves far beyond the capital. Students, parents and coaching networks across the country track the process closely, which makes allegations of irregularities politically combustible. When a test of this scale is cancelled, the fallout is never local.
That is part of why Friday’s meeting mattered. The CJP did not go in asking for minor procedural fixes. It walked out, by its own account, with the same core demand intact: Pradhan should go. With protests continuing and the party anchoring its case in both alleged brutality and the deaths that followed the cancellation, the next move now rests with the government.
For now, the line from the CJP is fixed. The resignation demand stands, and the ministers have been put on notice that the party is not shifting its position.