Rahul Gandhi wrote a letter to PM Narendra Modi, requesting a debate in Parliament on the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) in the wake of the paper leak row in connection with the medical entrance exam. “Our students deserve answers,” he said.
Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav also raised the issue “Why are paper leaks happening? The truth is that this is being done by the government so that it doesn’t have to give jobs to youth".
In response, PM Modi said he will tell every leader to work towards stopping paper leaks. "Those who played with the future of the youth shall not be spared. There have been arrests across the country. We have already made a strict law on this. To strengthen the exam system, necessary steps are being taken," he said.
In his maiden speech in the Lower House of Parliament, MP Chandrashekhar Azad said social justice will only happen when a caste census is conducted and reservation is given as per population. He said that SC, ST, OBC and Muslims suffer caste and religion-based discrimination in education and at workplaces. He further stressed the need for reservation in private sector. MP Akhilesh Yadav also made a pitch for holding a caste census in the country, asserting that social justice is impossible to achieve without it.
MP A Bimol Akoijam questioned the government’s silence on Manipur. (Photo: Screen grab/Sansad TV)
Demanding justice for Manipur, the Opposition stormed into the Well of the House even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi continued his speech. Chanting slogans like 'Dictatorship won't be tolerated', the Opposition continued its protest to demand a discussion on Manipur, forcing Modi to pause his speech briefly as Speaker Om Birla attempted in vain to bring order to the House.
In a fiery maiden speech, Congress MP A Bimol Akoijam questioned the government’s silence on Manipur, which has been hit by ethnic violence, even as he drew attention to the 60,000 people living in deplorable conditions in relief camps in the northeastern state for the past year.
The Agnipath scheme for the recruitment of soldiers led to a heated exchange between Rahul Gandhi and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh in Parliament. Asking Mr. Gandhi to not mislead the House by “making wrong statements", Singh said the next of kin of Agniveers (Personnel recruited under Agnipath) killed in the line of duty received financial assistance of ₹1 crore.
Claiming that Agniveers were being treated as “use and throw", Gandhi accused the government of creating a wedge between Indian Army personnel and Agniveers by treating them differently.
