Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav has broken his silence over the controversy surrounding the alleged NEET paper leak case, following comments made by Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sinha. Sinha had implied a connection between Yadav's personal secretary and an accused engineer involved in the scandal. In response, Yadav accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of attempting to divert attention from the main perpetrator by unnecessarily involving his name in the matter.
Speaking to the media, Yadav said that the I.N.D.I.A alliance is united on this issue. "We want the NEET exam to be immediately cancelled. The (BJP) have all the investigation agencies, they can call the PS or PA anyone for the probe. They want to divert the issue from the kingpin. Those who want to drag my name or my PA's name, this will not benefit anyone. The engineer who is talked about could be a beneficiary but Amit Anand and Nitish Kumar are the masterminds of the paper leak. The people of the country know that whenever BJP comes to power, then paper leaks happen," he added.
Paper was leaked in BJP-ruled states: Tejashwi
Tejashwi further said that paper leaks have taken place in BJP-ruled states of Bihar, Gujarat and Haryana. "Only Vijay Sinha is making these claims. The Economic Offences Wing (EOU) has never raised any question. When the arrests happened in May since then we have been raising our voices to carry out a probe. The engineer (Sikandar Yadvendu) about whom they are talking was recruited in 2021 by them in the urban development from the water resources department. Why do they want to save Amit Anand and Nitish Kumar? The truth will prevail soon. When paper leaks happened in the third phase of teachers' recruitment test (TRE) conducted by BPSC the accused got bail without going to prison," Yadav said.
What Bihar Deputy CM claimed?
Bihar Deputy CM Sinha claimed that Tejashwi's personal secretary, Pritam Kumar had called a guest house worker of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to book a room for Sikander Kumar Yadavendu, one of the accused in the case. He said that the word "Mantri" was used for the former Deputy CM. "On May 1, Tejashwi Yadav's personal secretary Pritam Kumar called guesthouse worker Pradip Kumar to book a room for Sikander Kumar Yadavendu who was jailed in Ranchi. On May 4, Pritam Kumar called Pradip Kumar again to book the room in the NHAI guest house. The word 'Mantri' was used for Tejashwi Yadav," Sinha said at a press conference on Thursday. The Deputy CM also sought clarification from Tejashwi Yadav regarding whether Pritam Kumar is still his Personal Secretary and who is Sikander Yadavendu.
It should be mentioned here that Patna police has arrested several people including some candidates who had taken the NEET exam. Out of them, four have been identified as- Anurag Yadav, a NEET candidate, his uncle Sikandar Yadavendu, and two others - Nitish Kumar and Anand.
Union Education Minister on NEET row
Amid the ongoing controversy over the results of NEET-UG 2024, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday said that the government is committed to protecting the interests of students. Addressing a press conference, he said that the NEET-UG 2024 will not be cancelled as of now and that the government will be forming a high-level committee to probe the matter. Emphasising a firm stance on transparency, he affirmed, "We will not compromise on transparency of the examination."
(With inputs from ANI)
