New Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram, Jul 26 (PTI) CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas on Sunday said the Opposition would demand the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the police action against students protesting in New Delhi over the alleged NEET paper leak.
Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Brittas said the Opposition would raise in Parliament the appointment of Naresh Pal Gangwar as Secretary, Department of Higher Education, when the session resumes on Monday.
He said the Opposition would raise both issues forcefully in Parliament.
“Last day, Shah said the government respected the youth who led the protest. Where was that respect for the last 36 days? When students were being beaten on the streets of the national capital, and their skulls were being cracked open, where was that respect,” Brittas asked.
“If there is even a grain of sincerity in those words, Amit Shah too should resign. Dharmendra Pradhan has resigned. The home minister, who is responsible for this brutal assault on innocent students, must resign,” he said.
Brittas said the Opposition would support any move to strengthen laws aimed at preventing examination-related fraud, but questioned the government’s claim that fresh legislation was the solution.
He pointed out that Parliament had passed the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act in 2024 after the government claimed it would curb examination fraud.
“Now the government is only proposing amendments to that law. The problem is not the absence of legislation but the lack of political will to enforce it and the authorities’ alleged compromise with vested interests,” he alleged.
The CPI(M) leader also questioned the appointment of Naresh Pal Gangwar as Secretary, Department of Higher Education, alleging that he had earlier faced accusations of irregularities in the disbursal of central government subsidies.
“Such an officer has now been appointed to head the department responsible for public examinations, where transparency and integrity are of utmost importance. All these issues will be raised during the discussion in Parliament,” Brittas said.
He alleged that while the authorities had released details of police personnel injured during the protests, no information had been made public about the students who were injured.
“The home ministry has released details of police personnel who were allegedly injured. But not a single detail has been made public about the protesters who were brutally assaulted. There is a complete veil of secrecy over their condition,” he said.
Brittas said the identities and medical condition of the injured students should be made public so that their families and organisations willing to assist them could extend support.
“The parents are anxious. Their relatives may have travelled from villages to Delhi and may require assistance. Even our efforts to help them are being blocked,” he alleged. PTI TBA SSK
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