The Centre’s plan to bring in stringent legislation against exam paper leaks faces a blockade from the Opposition in Parliament unless the government accepts its demand to sack Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, leaders of several parties told HT on Friday.
Opposition parties called for a meeting on Monday to make a final decision on the proposed law. Leaders from various parties said on Friday that their protests over student issues took precedence over allowing the bill to pass, which they said would give the government the upper hand.
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Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, in a video address to the Prime Minister on Thursday to announce the bill, said, “Before you come to Parliament today, after the sacking of Dharmendra Pradhan. First, apologize to the students and take strict action against those who ordered the use of lathes, batons and pellet guns to suppress students’ voices. Then we are ready to have a detailed discussion on the education system.”
“I would like to state clearly the opposition’s position – the students have three demands: (1) The corrupt education minister must go, (2) Action should be taken against those who attacked and beat up the students, (3) The Prime Minister must apologize to the students. These are the three conditions. We will not have any conversation, any discussion before Pradhan is removed. That’s all,” Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi said outside Parliament.
“It has now gone beyond just dropping a minister. The Prime Minister and the Home Minister are responsible. The Opposition completely rejects such stunts as the bill,” Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien said in India’s Rajya Sabha.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP John Prithas said: “We have no problem with any legislation to strengthen the examination system. But action must precede legislation. Dharmendra Pradhan must resign before discussion on the bill begins.”
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However, some opposition leaders stressed that although Pradhan’s resignation remains a non-negotiable condition, procrastinating on measures to tighten laws against paper leaks carries political risks.
A former home minister rejected one of the proposed provisions — setting up of fast-track courts — saying, “Establishing special fast-track courts is not the complete solution to the serious problem of ‘leaks’ in competitive exams and putting thousands of students at risk. There are 775 FTSCs in India to try various crimes. According to the Law Ministry, there are more than 2,45,000 cases pending in the FTSC. The FTSC is not a court building. It requires judges, court staff, public prosecutors, procedural compliance, investigators, bailiffs, witnesses, and additional financial resources.
“What will we discuss in the bill? The larger issues related to students and our demand for a discussion on NEET paper scams will always be covered in the discussion. The government wants to kill two birds with one stone. We will not allow that,” a senior Congress leader said.
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“Rahul Gandhi took to the roads to demand Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will join the protests. Under these circumstances, there is no scope for a compromise with the government,” a senior Rajya Sabha leader said.
“We are preparing to introduce the bill, but after you receive briefing on the Cabinet decision, we will inform you of our timing. The Prime Minister said that there should be no delay in the bill we are bringing with regard to students. The country also wants what the Prime Minister said, so it will not be right to resort to any tactics to obstruct it…” Kiren Rijiju said.
