NEW DELHI, July 28 (Tuesday) — Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government during a Lok Sabha debate on the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, accusing the administration of failing to restore students’ trust in the country’s examination system and relying on force instead of addressing legitimate concerns.
Participating in Tuesday’s parliamentary debate, Priyanka questioned the government’s handling of protests that erupted following the alleged leak of the NEET-UG examination paper. Referring to police action against protesting students, she demanded that Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah explain whether the demonstrators were “terrorists” to justify the use of batons, pellet guns and other forms of force.
She argued that rather than addressing students’ genuine grievances, the government had responded to peaceful democratic protests with coercive measures. According to Priyanka, every baton charge inflicted on students caused greater damage to the government’s credibility than to the protesters themselves.
Recalling her visit to the family of an injured NEET aspirant at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Priyanka said India’s youth are increasingly losing faith in a system where irregularities appear to outweigh merit. Citing figures presented during the debate, she claimed that examination paper leaks had occurred in 152 examinations over the past decade, while alleging that no major examination paper leak syndicate had been effectively dismantled. She also highlighted the heavy financial burden families face in preparing students for competitive examinations due to shortcomings in the public education system.
Congress leader K.C. Venugopal also condemned the police response to the student protests. Addressing the Lok Sabha, he read out a letter written by 19-year-old NEET aspirant Ankita Sangal from Maharashtra, who, according to him, died by suicide on July 25 after missing the examination cut-off by just 11 marks.
Venugopal further claimed that the number of student suicides in India had risen from 8,068 in 2014 to 14,488 at present, describing the increase as not merely a statistic but a reflection of a deep national crisis.
Priyanka’s remark that “it is not the Prime Minister’s camera angle that needs changing, but the angle of his heart” triggered a brief uproar in the Lok Sabha. Following objections from members of the ruling party, Speaker Om Birla ordered portions of her remarks to be expunged from the parliamentary record.
Venugopal concluded by asserting that students exercising their democratic right to peaceful protest are not enemies of the state, and called for accountability for those responsible for authorising or carrying out the use of force against them.
Source: The Hindu.