As the protests against the NEET exams have intensified due to allegations of leaked question papers and biased markings, a heated political controversy has sparked in Bihar.
The claims made by the accused individuals have sparked a conflict between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is part of the ruling coalition led by the Janata Dal (United), and the opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).
Also Read: NEET UG 2024 row: Arrested candidate confesses leaked question paper ‘matched the actual exam paper’
At the heart of this conflict is each political faction’s alleged association with the accused, particularly Sikandar Yadavendu, whom authorities suspect to be the mastermind behind the alleged operation.
Four individuals reported to the police that the exam paper was leaked 24 hours before the scheduled exam date on May 4th. The individuals include Anurag Yadav, a NEET candidate, his uncle Sikandar Yadavendu, and Nitish Kumar and Amit Anand.
Also Read: NEET-UG 2024 row: Supreme Court seeks responses from Centre, NTA on paper leak allegations
Anurag Yadav stated that his uncle had given him the leaked paper, which “contained questions identical to those on the actual exam.”
Meanwhile, Bihar Deputy CM Vijay Sinha alleged, “On May 1, Tejashwi Yadav’s personal secretary Pritam Kumar called guesthouse worker Pradip Kumar to book a room for Sikander Kumar Yadavendu… On May 4, Pritam Kumar called Pradip Kumar again to book the room… The word ‘mantri’ was used for Tejashwi Yadav.”
Sinha further slammed Tejashvi Yadav and said, “Tejashwi Yadav should clarify if Pritam Kumar is still his PS, and he should also clarify who is Sikander Kumar Yadavendu.”
“When Lalu Prasad Yadav was jailed in Ranchi, Sikander Kumar Yadavendu used to be at Lalu’s service,” Sinha said, adding, “he was a JE in the irrigation department.”
“They play with the future of the people. They do scams when they are in power, and they try to influence the appointment process,” Sinha alleged.
Meanwhile, Pradip Kumar said, “Pritam called me and asked me to book a room for Sikander Kumar on May 1 and then again on May 4. I asked for a requisition, which he said they would give.”
Also Read: NEET UG 2024 row: ‘If there is 0.001% negligence…’, Supreme Court tells NTA on ‘grace mark’ issue
Meanwhile, Karnataka Dy CM DK Shivakumar said, “I also tweeted about it. We want justice. I thank the court for helping all of us because the lives of the children, their aspirations and desires are important.”
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court took action on a plea from the NTA regarding the NEET-UG 2024 examination. The court issued a notice and requested the transfer of petitions concerning the NEET-UG exams from various High Courts to itself.
In addition, the Supreme Court has halted proceedings in the High Courts on this matter.
The apex court has emphasized that the counselling process for NEET-UG will continue without interruption.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court has notified the Centre and NTA regarding a petition filed by students who appeared for the NEET-UG exam in Meghalaya. These students claimed they lost 45 minutes during the exam and requested to be included among the 1563 students who were granted grace marks and given the option for a re-exam on June 23rd.
(With inputs from ANI)
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Published: 20 Jun 2024, 02:00 PM IST
