The BJP in Delhi has officially dismissed the media reports that the former Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan was offered a new Cabinet post, after quitting. In a packed press conference, Sambit Patra, BJP national spokesperson, categorically denied the rumor and said that all the speculation was made up completely on the basis of rumor. Patra said he had no discussions on a cabinet reshuffle and that it was not in the minds of the senior minister who is quitting the ministerial post.
Pradhan’s resignation, formally accepted by President Droupadi Murmu on the advice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, came after weeks of intense nationwide turbulence related to the high-stakes NEET paper leak controversy. The agitation had been the core demand of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) which held protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar for over a month, and the central government and protesting factions had gone into a deadlock over the issue of the leak. Union Minister Pralhad Joshi was immediately put in charge of the Ministry of Education in order to keep things running smoothly.
Pradhan made public his reasons for resigning in an emotional statement on social media and said he was proud of four decades of service to students, teachers and systemic reforms and thanked Modi for the opportunity to manage the portfolio. The past ten days had been a very heartbreaking time that he felt really lost, he said. Pradhan said he resigned because anti-national forces were trying to exploit the situation at Jantar Mantar and was trying to save the nation’s youth power and he wanted to keep them in a good place so they can focus on their studies and careers without legal risks.
The BJP has warned of speculation on internal government discussions in the background but insists the administration is working towards the establishment of the education system in India and restoration of credibility to public examinations. In combination with the leadership transition, the central government has made significant structural changes to the examination process. Prime Minister Modi recently formed a tech-focused task force led by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani and the task force will recommend the strongest reforms of cybersecurity, the better governance of examination agencies, the quality of ID verification and the implementation of quick and effective mechanisms to identify and prevent question paper leaks. And the government intends to strengthen the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act and put stronger sanctions on organized fraudsters and give investigators more power to check for corruption in public testing.
