No point in discussion if Education Minister doesn’t resign: CJP ahead of 3rd round of talks with govt

New Delhi: The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) on Saturday said that even though it welcomes the decision of educational reforms and the amendments to The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, established to tackle the problem of paper leaks, the main demand remains Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation.

This came hours before the third round of talks with the Centre. Earlier on Friday, Union Ministers J.P. Nadda and Jitendra Singh held the second round of talks with the CJP at the Constitution Club, where the government had told the CJP delegation that they would get back on their demands.

CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka on Saturday morning made it clear that there was no point in further discussions if the government was not ready to sack Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

Speaking to the reporters, Ranka said, “In yesterday’s meeting, we received a positive response regarding compensation and legal cases. We got an in-principle agreement, and we hope to receive the written agreement today as well. However, there has still been no concrete decision on our main demand — the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan.”

“In fact, as we saw in the mainstream media yesterday, sources were saying that Dharmendra Pradhan will not resign. If Dharmendra Pradhan is not going to resign, then please tell us what the point of holding such meetings is? In that case, we will move ahead with whatever strategy we decide on next,” Ranka added.

Additionally, amid the paper leak row, the government has replaced the Education Secretary and has also sacked 47 officials of the National Testing Agency (NTA). Reacting to this, Ranka said the move alone was not enough and the “ultimate accountability” lies with the Union Education Minister.

“Now, we will have to examine which 47 officials have been suspended and with what intention that action has been taken. We need to look at all those details. But again, as we’ve been saying, the ultimate accountability lies with the Education Minister of this country because he is directly responsible for all the paper leaks and for all the students who died by suicide after the NEET paper leak. Therefore, he must resign,” the CJP spokesperson said.

The Union Cabinet on Friday approved a Draft Bill proposing significantly stricter punishments for paper leaks in competitive examinations, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi publicly committed to introducing fast-track courts and enhanced penalties to safeguard students’ futures.

The Cabinet meeting, chaired by PM Modi at the Parliament House complex, gave its nod to amendments to The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.

In cases of organised paper leaks, the Bill proposes a jail term of up to 10 years and a maximum fine of Rs 10 crore. This marks a substantial increase over the existing law, which provides for three to five years’ imprisonment for individuals and five to 10 years’ imprisonment with a minimum fine of Rs 1 crore for organised crimes related to cheating and paper leaks.

IANS