Asaduddin Owaisi takes ‘exam warrior’ dig at PM Modi over NEET-NET row

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Sunday took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the raging controversy around the National Testing Agency (NTA) in the wake of paper-leak allegations and cancellations of exams.

In a post on X, Owaisi accused “exam warrior” Narendra Modi of waging a war on the future of the youth of this country.

He also that the onus of the discrepancies and alleged paper leaks lie with PM Modi and his minister.

“'Exam warrior' Narendra Modi has waged a war on our youth’s future. First it was NEET UG (~23 lakh students), then UGC-NET (~9 lakh students). Then CSIR-NET was cancelled (~2 lakh students). NEET-PG (~2 lakh) was cancelled a night before the exam,” Owaisi wrote on X.

“The responsibility lies with Modi and his ministers. Our youth deserve an apology from the PM & justice from his government.”

Over the last week, the Modi-led NDA government at the Centre has faced flak over competitive exam discrepancies.

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Questions have been raised against the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts entrance and recruitment exams. 

The examination body is under scanner over the alleged irregularities during the conduct of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Undergraduate programs (NEET-UG) this year, cancellation of University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) due to paper leak on darknet, and postponement the CSIR-UGC-NET.

The Ministry of Education said it has constituted a high-level committee of experts to make recommendations on reforms in the mechanism of the examination process, improvements in data security protocols and the functioning of the NTA. The 7-member committee, led by ISRO former chairman Dr K. Radhakrishnan, will submit its report to the ministry in the next two months.

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It also removed NTA's Director General (DG) Subodh Kumar Singh, replacing him with retired IAS officer Pradeep Singh Kharola, who is currently serving as the chairman and managing director of the India Trade Promotion Organization (IPTO).