The Centre on Friday held a second round of talks with representatives of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) over the NEET examination controversy, with Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda saying the discussions remained inconclusive and that another meeting would be held on Saturday after the government completes internal consultations on the issues raised.
The nearly two-hour meeting was attended by Union Ministers J.P. Nadda and Dr. Jitendra Singh, while the CJP was represented by its Chief Spokesperson Saurav Das and National Spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Nadda said the CJP had presented three principal demands along with five suggestions for reforms in the examination system.
“The meeting went on for almost two hours. They had three main demands and five reform suggestions for exams. We have told them that we will meet them again tomorrow afternoon and tell them about the discussion we had among the Government,” Nadda said.
He added that the discussions were held in a cordial atmosphere and the government heard the delegation’s concerns in detail before seeking time to deliberate on the demands.
According to the CJP, the government has expressed in-principle agreement on two of its demands — providing compensation to the families of NEET aspirants who allegedly died by suicide and withdrawing FIRs and legal cases against students involved in peaceful protests.
However, the group maintained that its primary demand remains the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
“The government has asked for time till tomorrow afternoon on our demand for Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation. We hope the government will remove him soon. The government has expressed in-principle approval on the two demands of compensation and withdrawal of FIRs and legal cases on students,” CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka said after the meeting.
The latest round of talks came after social activist Sonam Wangchuk ended his 26-day hunger strike following a written assurance from the Union government on addressing concerns related to the NEET examination and reforms in the country’s competitive examination system.
Wangchuk had announced the end of his fast after Union Ministers J.P. Nadda and Dr. Jitendra Singh met him and provided written assurances following negotiations with representatives of the protest movement.
The developments also came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the Union Cabinet would take up a draft Bill proposing fast-track courts and stringent punishment for those involved in paper leak cases. In a video message, the Prime Minister said the government had already directed departments to establish fast-track courts and emphasised that protecting the future of students remained a top priority.
(With agency inputs)
