Full story
Fast-track courts rejected
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he would set up “fast-track” courts to prosecute those behind exam paper leaks, but protesters and opposition parties rejected the proposal and insisted Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan quit first.
NBC News reported that protesters clashed briefly with police in New Delhi late Wednesday, with officers firing tear gas and wielding canes to push them back.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) launched protests against exam paper leaks that affected some 2 million students and have been linked to several suicides, and CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka asked: “But Modi-ji, tell us why are paper leaks happening in this country in the first place?”
In response to Modi’s X post, the Guardian said the CJP called the plan “It’s a Band-aid. That’s not giving us accountability.”
Jantar Mantar standoff
Thousands of protesters camped at Jantar Mantar in central New Delhi, and the movement’s leaders said they would not end demonstrations until Dharmendra Pradhan resigned.
The Associated Press reported that Delhi Metro Rail Corp. shut 16 stations in and around central New Delhi on Thursday until further notice, the second such large-scale closure this week due to security concerns.
At the same time, the BBC described how the CJP grew from a satirical online movement into a visible youth protest group led by Abhijeet Dipke, a 30-year-old political communications strategist and former student at Boston University.
Al Jazeera quoted Avanshika Singh, who said she filmed protests after running from tear gas and added: “The entire country today feels the sting of batons and tear gas with us.”
Pressure on Pradhan
The protests have centered on education reform and the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan, after the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) was cancelled following allegations that questions had been leaked and a subsequent government inquiry confirmed the leak.
The BBC said nearly 2.28 million candidates sat the exam on 3 May, and it reported that families and the CJP alleged that some 20 students died by suicide due to distress after the exam was cancelled.
The Guardian reported that Rahul Gandhi escalated criticism by saying there had been 152 exam paper leaks across the country over the past decade without a single conviction, and he said: “Zero convictions,”
In parallel, the Guardian reported that the health minister JP Nadda accused Gandhi of exploiting the protests for political gain, and Nadda said: “Instead, you are trying to use students’ issues and their demands for political mileage.”
