by: NavJeevan

TN Assembly unanimously passes resolution to scrap NEET; Parliament adjourned after Oppn protest demanding discussion

NE NEWS SERVICE
CHENNAI/NEW DELHI, JUNE 28

The Tamil Nadu Assembly unanimously passed a resolution against the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET), urging the Union government to scrap NEET and allow State governments to undertake medical admissions based on class 12 marks, as was done before NEET’s implementation.

The resolution was introduced by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin amid uproar over a paper leak in the NEET-UG 2024 examination and the sudden postponement of the NEET-PG 2024 examination.

  • Urges Central government to allow State governments to undertake medical admissions based on Class 12 marks
  • A message should go from the Parliament that the Indian government and the opposition are talking about the students together: Rahul Gandhi

Several regional parties, including Manithaneya Makkal Katchi, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist), supported the resolution.

Earlier, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP K. Kanimozhi reiterated the demand to “exempt” Tamil Nadu from NEET, conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA)  for medical admissions across the country.

“Tamil Nadu has been consistently saying that we do not want NEET. Now it is proved that NEET is not a fair examination, and students are losing so much because of NEET,” Kanimozhi said.

She said that the state assembly passed a resolution to scrap the national-level entrance exam and also “exempt” the state from it. “We want NEET to be abolished. We have passed a resolution in our Assembly, and it is still pending with the President for signature,” Kanimozhi said. The DMK MP further mentioned that the lives of students are affected while waiting for the President’s approval.

The Lok Sabha was adjourned after the Opposition raised slogans demanding discussion on alleged irregularities in conducting NEET and NET examinations.

Congress MPs Syed Naseer Hussain and Ranjeet Ranjan have given notices under Rule 267 in the Rajya Sabha, while Manickam Tagore, Gaurav Gogoi and K.C. Venugopal have given an adjournment notice on the NEET issue in the Lok Sabha.

The Opposition MPs demanded the suspension of business and discussion on alleged irregularities in the functioning of the National Testing Agency. However, the opposition raised slogans and protested within the House after Speaker Om Birla denied permission to discuss the issue.

Earlier, Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi said, “Yesterday, all the leaders of the opposition parties had a meeting and it was unanimous that today, we want a discussion on the NEET issue. There should be a discussion on NEET here in the House. I request the Prime Minister that this is an issue of the youth and it should be discussed properly and it should be a respectful discussion. We will do it respectfully. You should also join the discussion, you should also participate because this is a matter of the youth. A message should go from the Parliament that the Indian government and the opposition are talking about the students together.”

In Rajya Sabha, Speaker Jagdeep Dhankar denied permission for an adjournment motion and said members could discuss the issue in detail during the discussion of the motion of thanks. However,  as opposition members continued to protest, the Speaker adjourned the house till 12 noon.

The NEET-UG 2024 Examination, conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on May 5, took place at 4,750 centres in 571 cities, including 14 cities abroad, with over 23 lakh candidates appearing. An unprecedented 67 candidates achieved a perfect score of 720 marks out of 720, leading to widespread protests in the country.

The Ministry of Education stated that it has constituted a high-level committee of experts to recommend reforms in the examination process, improvements in data security protocols, and the functioning of the NTA.