'Need Dharmendra Pradhan's Resignation First': Opposition On Centre's NEET Discussion Stand

Let Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resign first, the Opposition insisted as the government said Wednesday it was ready for a discussion on the NEET paper leak issue.

"For fair discussion on NEET, there will be no debate until Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigns," Mallikarjun Kharge, leading a united Opposition front, said during the heated proceedings in the Rajya Sabha.

अगर शिक्षा प्रणाली पर Fair Discussion होना है, तो शिक्षा मंत्री को पहले इस्तीफ़ा देना चाहिए। pic.twitter.com/R8jXXFbk4W

— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) July 22, 2026

Responding to the Opposition's charge, Leader of the House and Union Minister JP Nadda stated that the government is not shying away from a discussion.

"Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju has said very clearly just now that the Government is ready to discuss all issues. Besides this, our Government is ready to also discuss the NEET paper leak and all matters related to it," Nadda said, adding that theirs is a "transparent government".  

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju underscored that the government had been maintaining since the beginning of the Monsoon Session that it was ready to discuss all important issues, including the NEET exam paper leak.

"If you are looking for excuses to not have a discussion, then it is not right," Rijiju said, adding that the government was "100 per cent ready" for a discussion on the issue.

"I would like to present the side of the Government in the House. Since day one of the Monsoon session, the Government has been saying that we are ready to have a discussion on all important issues. We are ready for a discussion on NEET exam paper leak since the beginning. We are ready even now," he said.

The Minister said the government had conveyed its willingness to discuss the issue to Congress leaders as well as leaders of other parties.

"We have said this to the Congress leaders as well as leaders of other parties that the Government is ready for a discussion but how the discussion is to be taken up has to be decided after meeting with everyone under the chairmanship of the Chair," he said.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, who joined Rahul Gandhi as he led a march with other MPs towards the Prime Minister's residence in New Delhi on Tuesday, also insisted on the Education Minister's resignation before any talks with the government.

"The students have demanded that the resignation come first, followed by a discussion. An assurance must be given that the resignation will take place," Akhilesh Yadav said.

"Let the resignation be submitted; then the debate will follow," he declared.

The Cockroach Janta Party-led movement took on a street presence in June when it founder, Abhijeet Dipke, returned to India from the US and began organising protests across cities and university campuses that drew hundreds. 

The New Delhi sit-in initially drew a few hundred daily protesters, but the turnout soon grew into the thousands. The movement gathered more momentum after activist Sonam Wangchuk joined the demonstration and began a hunger strike against the NEET paper leak that lasted more than three weeks. Police forcibly transferred Wangchuk to a hospital over the weekend.

On Monday, thousands poured into New Delhi's streets to demand the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, heeding the call of the CJP.

Delhi Police fired tear gas to stop thousands of protesters from marching to parliament. Dozens of protesters and police personnel were injured in the clashes, witnesses said.

"When the party organises a movement, we invite people and make preparations; yet, these students arrived without any preparation. This isn't just about hundreds of thousands; the government has betrayed crores of people," Akhilesh Yadav added.