New Delhi, July 20: Congress President and Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday took a swipe at the government during the first day of Parliament’s Monsoon Session, raising issues including the NEET paper leak and the Ram Mandir donation row.
His remarks intensified the political confrontation as the Opposition pressed the government on key national issues during the session.
During the day, the Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned multiple time following sloganeering by opposition members over various issues, including NEET paper leak and alleged Ram temple donation embezzlement issue.
The Rajya Sabha was also adjourned multiple times amid the protest by oppostion leaders.
Speaking in the Upper House, Kharge launched a sharp attack on the government and flagged crackdown on the protesters.
Kharge said that thousands of students had gathered at Jantar Mantar to protest against irregularities in the NEET examination, but the police resorted to a lathi charge against them.
“The government is trying to beat them, suppress them and crush their voice,” Kharge said amid interruptions in the House.
He said the issue was not merely political but concerned the future of lakhs of students across the country, and urged the government to address their concerns.
Kharge also took a jibe at the treasury benches over Ram Mandir donation theft, saying, “There is theft of donations too, and all its supporters are sitting there,” before returning to the issue of students and the irregularities in the NEET examination.
Later, speaking to reporters in the Parliament complex, Kharge said irregularities in the NEET examination had resulted in the deaths of many students, yet the government remained indifferent to their plight.
He asserted that if the Modi government was incapable of conducting examinations properly, it should vacate the seat of power.
Expressing outrage over the police action against protesting students in Delhi, the Congress leader said that lathi-charging and intimidating young people, who had come to the national capital to voice their demands was not democracy.
Referring to rising unemployment and the damage caused to students’ futures by examination irregularities, Kharge said such a government did not deserve to remain in power.
Kharge also took Prime Minister Narendra Modi to task over the theft of offerings at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
He said crores of rupees had been collected as donations and offerings in the name of Lord Ram, and a massive theft of those funds was now taking place.
Stating that the Congress had consistently raised the issue, he asserted that the Prime Minister himself must take responsibility for it. He noted that the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust had been constituted by the Prime Minister and its members had been selected by him. If the very people chosen by him were now involved in theft, Kharge said, the Prime Minister bore full responsibility for it.
Meanwhile, Congress general secretary and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also demanded a discussion on the country’s flawed education policy, including recurring paper leaks.
She said that while the Opposition has been demanding a discussion on the issue, the government has instead restored to lathis and tear gas shells on protesting students.
“Instead of lathi-charging students, the BJP government should review its policies and failures. First, the NEET paper was leaked, the examination was cancelled, and now there are reports of irregularities even in the re-NEET. We were told that the Prime Minister himself would monitor the process. Despite that, why and how is all this happening? How are paper leaks occurring repeatedly?” she asked in a post on X.
She said there should be a detailed discussion on the issue in Parliament and the Prime Minister must listen to the concerns of crores of young people and answer their questions.
Dramatic visuals were witnessed in the national capital after hundreds of youth protesters on Monday started walking from Jantar mantar to Parliament as part of the protest planned by Cockroach Janata Party.
Delhi Police resorted to lathi charge on the protesters at multiple sites from Jantar Mantar to Shastri Bhawan, Rail Bhawan and Raisina Road as protesters managed to reach near the Parliament by clearing multiple ring of security layers put in place by the Delhi Police.
The protesters carried placards demanding accountability in examination system over paper leaks and also demanded resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Police then fired multiple rounds of Tear gas shells on the protesters near Shastri Bhawan and Raisina Road, when they started approaching near Parliament. Following the commotion on the streets of the national capital, even the entrance of Parliament was closed for a while, as Delhi Police used force to disperse the crowd.