Congress Announces Nationwide Campaign on Examination Reforms and NEET-UG 2026 Issue

PTI, June 25, 2026, Ahmedabad/Bhopal/Nagpur: Opposition Congress on Thursday announced a nationwide campaign from June 30 to demand Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation over the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak, and also to seek a comprehensive overhaul of the country's examination system.

The first phase of this 40-day campaign, titled 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' (Voice of Students), will culminate with a "Delhi Chalo" protest march on August 9, a party leader said.

Party leaders held press conferences at various places in the country, including Ahmedabad, Bhopal and Nagpur, over the issue.

Talking to reporters in Ahmedabad, Congress leader Satej Patil alleged that repeated examination irregularities had created a "massive trust deficit" among students and jeopardised the future of lakhs of aspirants.

Patil, a legislator from Maharashtra, said nearly 23 lakh students appeared for NEET after years of preparation, but only around two lakh would eventually secure admission to medical, dental, AYUSH and allied courses.

"They talk about running a country of 130 crore people, but they cannot even conduct an examination properly for 23 lakh students. It is such a tedious exam, and they are failing to conduct it properly," the former Maharashtra minister said.

He said the issue was not just limited to paper leaks or re-examination, and had severely eroded the faith of students in the system.

The party announced the nationwide outreach campaign covering 28 cities, targeting students, job aspirants, coaching hubs, college campuses and libraries.

Under the programme, Congress leaders will conduct leaflet distribution drives, street-corner meetings and campus outreach activities beginning June 30.

Patil alleged that paper leaks had become a recurring phenomenon and accused the government of failing to hold the masterminds accountable.

The Congress also demanded an inquiry into the functioning of the National Testing Agency (NTA), examination processes, paper-setting mechanisms, printing and transportation systems, digital infrastructure and vendor contracts.

"Where did the leaked paper come from? Who got it first? This points to a nexus. News of a paper leak breaks and the very next day advertisements appear asking students to rejoin classes in case of a re-exam. This nexus between coaching classes and the system needs to be broken," Patil said.

The Congress leader demanded that Pradhan accept responsibility for the alleged failures and step down from office.

The party also called for a fixed annual examination and recruitment calendar, with pre-announced dates for exams, results and appointments.

In Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Jitu Patwari and party MP Imran Masood addressed a press conference to provide details about the campaign.

"Alleged irregularities in various competitive examinations, including the NEET-UG, have affected the future of millions of students and undermined public confidence in the examination system," they said.

Paper leaks are no longer isolated incidents but have taken the form of an organised network, they added.

Meanwhile, in a press conference in Nagpur, Congress spokesperson Dr Shama Mohamed gave an outline of the 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' campaign.

She also slammed the Union government over its "failure" to curb incidents of examination paper leaks.

"Paper leaks have been happening across the country since the BJP came to power in the country in 2014," she alleged.

She demanded the resignation of Union Minister Pradhan, saying no action was being taken against him.