Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday launched a fresh attack on the BJP government over the alleged paper leak crisis in Uttarakhand, claiming the state is an "epicentre of paper leaks" and promised to fight for the rights of the students and job aspirants.
A day ahead of his scheduled meeting with students in Dehradun as part of Congress party's 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' campaign, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha accused the government of failing to stop examination leaks despite introducing an anti-cheating law.
Jobs Are Being Sold, Not Earned
Rahul Gandhi in a post on social media alleged that recruitment examinations by the Uttarakhand Subordinate Service Selection Commission (UKSSSC) had become vulnerable to organised corruption.
"A 'system' has taken root here regarding UKSSSC exams, where positions like Patwari or Lekhpal are secured not through merit, but at rates fixed by criminals," Gandhi alleged.
He said the anti-cheating law enacted by the state government has failed to prevent repeated paper leak incidents.
"The law remained only on paper, while exam papers continued to be sold in the market," he said.
This Isn't Just a Leak, It’s Theft.
Gandhi said thousands of young aspirants spend years preparing for competitive examinations, paying application fees and travelling long distances to exam centres, only to lose opportunities because of alleged corruption.
"Imagine if a student prepares for years. The student fills out the form, pays the fees and travels to a distant exam centre. But the position that the student should have has been bought by another."
"This isn’t just a leak, it is theft. Theft of that young person’s rights, livelihood and future," he said.
As always Gandhi reiterated his support for students, saying, "I say to every aspirant, every student and every young person in Uttarakhand—this is your fight, and I stand with you."
And he also declared, "We will not let the future be auctioned off. We will not let dreams be leaked off."
'Chhatron Ki Goonj' Event in Dehradun.
Rahul Gandhi will address students at the 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' programme in Dehradun on July 17.
The event will now be held at Bannu School Ground after the Congress was reportedly denied permission to organise it at the city's Parade Ground.
The Uttarakhand Congress in the presence of the state president Ganesh Godiyal has intensified preparations for the programme.
For the first time, there is a national campaign to prevent paper leaks.
And 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' is a national Congress campaign that aims to engage students and youth on issues like paper leaks, unemployment and the increasing privatisation of education.
The outreach began in Kota, Rajasthan and has spread to other states.
According to Uttarakhand Congress leaders, more than 2.54 lakh students had registered on the campaign's website by Tuesday afternoon.
Party spokesperson Garima Dasauni said preparations for Rahul Gandhi’s meeting were underway to accommodate more than 20,000 students and plans are being made for them to go from all districts in Uttarakhand to attend.
The Dehradun event is going to further sharpen the Congress party's campaign to expose alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations as it wants to make youth issues a major political focus ahead of upcoming elections.
