The Centre has stepped up its response to the paper leak crisis with a high-powered task force led by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani and a tougher anti-paper leak bill set to be introduced in Parliament, even as the INDIA bloc seeks to keep the spotlight on the July 20 police action and the student movement that forced the government onto the defensive.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday announced the constitution of a high-powered task force headed by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani to recommend reforms to make the exam system leakproof.
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The prime minister’s announcement came a day after the 36-day agitation, led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), ended with the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as the Education Minister.
A multidisciplinary group of domain experts will be part of the task force on reforms to be carried out for the examinations conducted by the NTA. Besides Nilekani, other members of the task force are former chairman of ISRO S Somanath, former director of the Intelligence Bureau, Tapan Deka, director of IIT Chennai, V Kamakoti, former education secretary Anita Karwal, and logistics expert Amrit Lal Meena.
Opposition to corner govt over police action
Meanwhile, INDIA bloc parties are set to press for an urgent discussion in Parliament on the alleged use of excessive force against students protesting over the NEET paper leak. Rahul Gandhi has written to Home Minister Amit Shah seeking accountability, while TMC’s Sagarika Ghose has moved a notice to suspend the day’s business to take up the issue, calling it a matter of “grave national importance”, on Monday.
While the Centre is scheduled to introduce a bill in the Lok Sabha on Monday to strengthen the anti-paper leak law, Congress and other opposition parties are in no mood to relent. They are expected to demand answers from the government in both Houses over allegations of pellet gun use, the deployment of men in plain clothes during the July 20 protest and the injuries suffered by several students.
In a letter to Shah, Rahul demanded accountability for what he termed the “barbaric assault” on peacefully protesting students and questioned whether the home minister had approved the use of “lethal force”, including pellet guns, against the youth.
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The Congress leader alleged that hundreds of students had suffered injuries during the police action and claimed women protesters were assaulted by police personnel.
A senior Opposition leader said the resignation of Pradhan did not mark the end of the issue. “Pradhan’s resignation is not the full stop; it is only a semicolon. The Prime Minister should apologise to the students, while the Home Minister must explain where the pellets came from and who authorised their use. The role of the Home Minister has to be investigated. The youth have now handed the baton to Members of Parliament,” the leader said.
(With agency inputs)
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