Dharmendra Pradhan Resigns as Education Minister Amid NEET Row
Education Minister steps down following nationwide student protests
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Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned on Saturday over the NEET-UG 2026 controversy.
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Pradhan cited his desire to protect students’ futures, preserve national unity, and prevent exploitation of the protests.
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Protests led by students and the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) had demanded his immediate departure as a core condition.
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Prior to his resignation, the government handed the probe to the CBI and transitioned the exam to a Computer-Based Test mode.
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 25th July: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned from the Union Cabinet on Saturday amid escalating nationwide protests regarding the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak controversy. In a detailed resignation letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and shared on social media platform X, Pradhan stated that his decision was made to ensure the country’s youth do not remain caught in a “web of confusion”.
The resignation follows weeks of intense demonstrations led by student organizations and political groups, including the Cockroach Janata Party, which had made Pradhan’s departure a non-negotiable demand. Pradhan emphasized that stepping down was never a matter of “personal prestige,” but rather a necessary step to safeguard national unity and prevent anti-national elements from exploiting the massive youth protests concentrated at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.
Reflecting on the ongoing crisis, Pradhan defended his ministry’s initial response to the irregularities discovered in the May 3 examination. He noted that the Centre acted promptly by cancelling the test, transferring the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and successfully conducting a re-examination for over two million students on June 21. To prevent future lapses, the government has mandated that the examination will transition to a Computer-Based Test (CBT) format starting next year.
Despite these corrective measures, the outgoing minister expressed deep dismay that individuals in responsible positions had attempted to mislead students during the unrest. Reaffirming his four-decade commitment to educational reform, Pradhan expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the Prime Minister for his ongoing trust and pledged to continue dedicating himself to the aspirations of India’s youth.
