Kota (Rajasthan) [India], June 17 (ANI): Congress leader Pawan Khera on Wednesday said the “Chhatron ki Goonj” campaign was necessitated due to the government’s failure to address growing anxiety among students and repeated irregularities in examinations.
Speaking to ANI, Khera referred to the suicide of a student ahead of the NEET examination and said it underscored the immense pressure faced by aspirants.
“A girl committed suicide a day or two before the NEET exam. The government doesn’t seem to understand. Anxiety is constantly growing among people,” he said.
Questioning the Centre’s response to paper leak incidents, Khera asked, “If the government had woken up, would this program have been necessary? Would this protest be necessary? Would this suicide be necessary? What kind of joke is this?”
He said the purpose of the campaign was to draw the government’s attention to the concerns of students and their families.
“Have you ever heard that Telegram got banned, and the Air Force is transporting papers? This is how the government has shown its failure,” he said.
The Congress party has launched a student movement starting from Kota, which will proceed to Prayagraj, Patna, and Delhi.
The campaign aims to raise a voice against problems like paper leaks, rigging in exams, declining standards of education, and rising fees.
Leader of the Opposition and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday visited Kota, Rajasthan, to engage directly with students regarding the mounting pressures within India’s educational landscape.
Addressing a gathering in the city known for its intense coaching culture, the LoP emphasised that the meeting was strictly non-political. His primary objective, he stated, was to confront the harsh realities experienced by students who are “struggling to get a future.
“This evening is about you. It is about what you are facing. It is about the challenges that you’re dealing with every single day.”Reflecting on insights gained during his cross-country Yatra, Gandhi questioned the structural shifts in the educational landscape, specifically highlighting the decline of the public sector and the prohibitive costs of private education.
He argued that the system “pressures, stresses, suppresses, and crushes its children,” creating a high-stakes environment that has led to tragic outcomes. The LoP set a sombre, urgent goal for the dialogue: to work toward a future where no student in India feels the desperation that leads to self-harm.
The NEET-UG 2026 re-examination will be conducted on June 21, from 2:00 pm to 5:15 pm. The National Testing Agency (NTA) scheduled the retest following the cancellation of the May 3 exam due to paper leak controversies. (ANI)