Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said the NEET examination, under the BJP government, has turned into "cheat”.
He accused the administration of failing to protect the future of the youth and destroying the hopes of millions of students through repeated paper leaks and unemployment.
Speaking about the ongoing Parliament session and repeated adjournments in both Houses, Yadav said: "A sense of anger against the Bharatiya Janata Party is visible. Every arrangement made by the government has failed. It failed when they conducted the NEET exam. ‘NEET’ has become ‘cheat’. Can anyone imagine that such a significant examination could be toyed with in this manner? There is immense anger over that," Akhilesh said.
The SP chief also targeted the Uttar Pradesh government over alleged examination paper leaks and raised concerns over unemployment among the youth.
He said students from middle-class families depend on competitive examinations to secure their future and alleged that the government's handling of the issue had increased public anger.
Also read: Akhilesh Yadav slams Centre over NEET row, student protests
"In Uttar Pradesh, our Chief Minister is busy eating mangoes, while papers for 20 different examinations have been leaked there. Just think about it, there are no jobs, no employment. You claim that investment is coming, you say we are going to become a ‘Vishwaguru’ (world leader), you talk about ‘Viksit Bharat’ (developed India), and you cite these growth rates. If the growth rate is high and per capita income is increasing, then why are these unemployed youths wandering the streets? They want fair examinations; they want to build their future," he said.
Yadav further alleged that the issue had become a political crisis for the BJP and said the government should have engaged with the opposition and public earlier to address their concerns.
He added, "Most of them come from middle-class families whose entire livelihood depends on getting a job. If even one child in their family becomes a doctor or an engineer, or gets a stable job, the entire family's survival depends on it. These were the very people who had supported the BJP. This is now a crisis for the BJP. And there is only one solution to this crisis: if the BJP government leaves, the crisis ends. This isn't a government; it is pure arrogance. Who stopped you from talking to people? You had discussions later on anyway; why couldn't you have held those talks earlier? You could have provided assurances much sooner. The country and its youth are angry with the government, and that was clearly visible in Delhi."
Responding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement that those found guilty in the NEET case would face the harshest punishment, the SP chief said voters would ultimately hold governments accountable in a democracy.
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