New Delhi: Chief Ministers of non-BJP states banded together Wednesday, saying they should jointly move the Supreme Court to demand that the NEET-JEE examinations be deferred on the grounds that holding them in the current situation poses a risk to students.
In a joint video meeting called by Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi, seven state chief ministers participated to discuss the country-wide students’ demand to postpone the common entrance tests meant for medical and engineering colleges.
The JEE (Main) is scheduled to be held between 1 and 6 September, while NEET will be held on 13 September.
West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said holding the examinations at this point will cause students serious “mental agony”.
“The student community should not feel harassed or deprived or face mental torture due to this,” said Banerjee, adding that she had written multiple letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking him to address the issue.
Apart from Banerjee, the other CMs who participated in the meeting were Punjab’s Amarinder Singh, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, Rajasthan’s Ashok Gehlot, Jharkhand’s Hemant Soren, Chhattisgarh’s Bhupesh Baghel, and Puducherry CM V. Narayanasamy.
Also read: No plans to postpone JEE, NEET, but final decision lies with education ministry, says MHA
‘No time to approach PM, court should give decision’
Amarinder Singh led the demand for all opposition chief ministers to act together in moving the Supreme Court over this issue. “Chalo, let’s go to court,” Singh said.
“If all the states take it up collectively with SC, they might agree. I would request colleagues from other states, not just our party to come with us and move the court,” he said.
However, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren intervened to say that “perhaps we should go meet the PM before going to the court.”
Banerjee and Singh, though, were of the opinion that there is no time to lose.
“September is just a few days away. If we ask PM for time, and he gives us an appointment after two to three weeks, then it would be too late,” Singh countered.
Agreeing with Singh, Banerjee said the leaders in Delhi could meet the PM, “but the final call will be SC’s. So we should go to court”.
Baghel and Narayanasamy also supported the call to go to court together, and added that other CMs not in the meeting might join in.
Also read: Thermal screening, isolation rooms — how govt plans to hold NEET, JEE Mains amid Covid risks
‘Govt’s refusal to pay GST compensation a betrayal’
The group also discussed the issue of GST compensation not being paid to states on time, with Gandhi calling it a betrayal of the people’s trust.
She said dues have accumulated and the finances of all states have been affected badly, while the central government continues to profiteer from “unilateral” cesses which are non-shareable with states.
“This refusal to compensate the states is nothing short of a betrayal by the Modi government and a betrayal of trust of the people of India,” she said at the meeting.
Gandhi further noted that the GST was enacted as an example of “cooperative federalism” and the GST regime came into existence because states agreed to forego their constitutional powers of taxation in the larger national interest and on the promise of compulsory GST compensation for a period of five years.
A crucial GST Council meeting is set to take place Thursday.
Other issues that came up at the meeting were the Draft EIA Notification 2020, airports privatisation and the National Education Policy, with Gandhi saying certain aspects of it should worry them all.
Gandhi called for more such meetings of like-minded parties in the larger interest of the country and the public’s good.
(With inputs from PTI)
Also read: Covid impact has ‘severely diminished’ space for govt to support demand, says RBI report
The mental agonhnghat manta banerjee mentions relates to the extension of the exams fever . Dont postpone further and give relief to the students who have been stuck in.the exam.zone.