New Delhi: Three days after police used tear gas and batons on protesters marching towards Parliament to seek Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation over the NEET-UG paper leak, the Centre has shifted Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi to another ministry.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a video posted close to midnight, said the Union Cabinet will announce stricter measures against examination fraud on Friday.
According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training late Thursday night, Joshi, who has headed the Department of Higher Education since January 2025, has been appointed Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, in place of Vivek Bhardwaj, who superannuates on 31 July.
Naresh Pal Gangwar, Secretary in the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, will be Vineet Joshi’s replacement. T. K. Anil Kumar, Additional Secretary in the Department of Rural Development, has been named Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy.
The order takes Joshi out of both departments of the Ministry of Education. He had held charge of School Education and Literacy since 1 July, when Sanjay Kumar superannuated.
The Department of Higher Education oversees the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the NEET-UG. On 12 May, the agency had announced that the exam, held 3 May, stood cancelled after test questions circulated before the test matched portions of the actual paper. Some 22.7 lakh candidates had registered for it. The case went to the CBI, which has made arrests across states, and the examination was held again on 21 June. The results came out on 16 July.
Joshi appeared before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports on 21 May, along with NTA Director General Abhishek Singh. They told the panel, chaired by Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, that the leak did not originate from the NTA system. The agency also told the committee it would convert the NEET-UG into a computer-based test and take up limits on attempts and age with the Health Ministry.
Joshi ran the NTA as Director General till 2022 and, before that, chaired the Central Board of Secondary Education, where he brought in Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation. He has also been serving as acting chairman of the University Grants Commission since April 2025, an arrangement questioned under Section 5(2) of the UGC Act, 1956, which keeps officers of the Union and state governments out of the post.
Public anger over the NEET-UG paper leak has been steadily rising ever since the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) came to the scene. The CJP has now been camping at Jantar Mantar for about a month.
The CJP protest saw renewed attention when activist Sonam Wangchuk embarked on a hunger strike on 28 June. He is yet to break his fast, on Day 26. The CJP’s demands include Pradhan’s resignation, compensation for the families of the NEET aspirants who died by suicide, and reforms in the examination system. Pradhan had earlier this week said that the government would take up NEET and the concerns of students in Parliament.
The changes in the Ministry of Education are among more than a dozen appointments at the secretary level cleared Thursday. Keshav Chandra has been named Secretary, Ministry of Mines, in place of Piyush Goyal, who goes to the National Human Rights Commission as Secretary General. Katikithala Srinivas moves from Housing and Urban Affairs to the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, and Chandra Bhushan Kumar takes over as Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment.
More strict actions to come in tomorrow’s Cabinet, says Modi
While protests continue at Jantar Mantar over the NEET-UG paper leak, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on X: “More strict actions against paper leaks to come in tomorrow’s Cabinet.”
More strict actions against paper leaks to come in tomorrow’s Cabinet! pic.twitter.com/NRysBukk5U
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 23, 2026
The announcement came just hours after the PM said his government would set up fast-track courts to ensure speedy trials and stricter punishment for those involved in paper leaks.
Modi further said that the matter will be discussed in Cabinet Friday and from Monday, efforts will be made to pass a Bill to strengthen action against paper leaks.
In the video, Modi said, “Friends, I know that paper leaks are not an ordinary matter. For lakhs of students and their parents, it is extremely painful. And that is why, in the last two and a half months since the paper leak incidents, several major steps have been taken. The culprits have been caught; they are currently in jail.”
He added: “Our most important responsibility was to ensure that a whole year for the students is not wasted. It was very important to conduct the exams immediately. The government used its full strength to arrange exams for nearly 22 lakh students in the shortest possible time. And just five or six days ago, on the 19th, the results were also announced. News of the happiness of successful students is coming from all over the country.”
“However, we are not among those who are satisfied with just that. And therefore, I have issued directions to the departments to set up fast-track courts. The departments worked tirelessly and, late last night, provided me with a draft. This draft, which includes provisions for fast-track courts and stringent punishments, will be discussed in the Cabinet tomorrow,” he further said.
“After incorporating suggestions from Cabinet colleagues, it will be given a final shape. Efforts will be made to get this Bill passed in the House as soon as possible, as the second week of the Parliament session begins on Monday,” Modi added.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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