Bhubaneswar: BJD chief Naveen Patnaik on Sunday, July 19, urged the Centre to initiate talks with students protesting alleged irregularities in the conduct of examinations and called for a thorough debate in Parliament over the matter.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has been staging a protest in Delhi’s Jantar Mantar against irregularities in the conduct of exams. The agitators are also demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan following the cancellation of NEET-UG exams over allegations of paper leak.
Patnaik, the leader of the opposition in the Odisha Assembly, expressed his views in a long social media post where he said, “Politics aside, I urge the government to initiate a meaningful dialogue with the students who have been peacefully protesting for days. They must be given a platform to express their views.”
Demanding fixing of accountability over “lapse of trust due to mismanagement in conduct of examinations”, Patnaik said, “A vibrant democracy advances through dialogue, not silence — and this dialogue is most vital when it involves the youth of the nation.”
He said the issue, which has “affected millions of students across the country, must be taken up in Parliament as the highest priority”.
“It deserves a thorough debate in the temple of democracy, leading to concrete reforms that ensure paper leaks, flawed assessments, and systemic failures are never repeated,” he added.
Patnaik said that youth of India are looking up to the present leadership of the country.
“We cannot fail them. Sincere, open-minded dialogue with the peaceful young protesters will help restore faith in our democracy, in our education system, and in the leadership entrusted with shaping their future. @bjd_odisha stands firmly with the youth and students of the country,” he said.
“For millions of children in our country, education remains the only path to a brighter future. Every developed nation is built upon a strong education system and a transparent, credible examination process,” he said.
Stating that India has made remarkable progress because of the strength of its education system, the five-term chief minister of Odisha said education has nurtured generations of brilliant doctors, scientists, engineers, teachers, and innovators who have shaped modern India.
“Today, however, trust in this system stands broken. The damage goes far beyond a failed exam. It shatters faith in the very foundation of education system. It tells deserving students that hard work no longer matters, and robs them of their only ladder out of poverty,” Patnaik said in the X post.
The Biju Janata Dal has also demanded the resignation of Pradhan on the paper leak and hit the streets demanding fixing of accountability for the lapses, party spokesperson Lenin Mohanty said.
Follow on Twitter | Edited by Neha Khan | 
