New Delhi [India], May 21 (ANI): Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday backed the Youth Congress protests over the NEET UG paper leak and questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's silence on the issue.

In an X post, Rahul Gandhi said that the party would not stop until Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigns.

Sharing a video of a protest in Rajasthan, Gandhi also accused the BJP state government of 'raining lathis' at protesters.

Taking a jibe at PM Modi and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni sharing toffees, Gandhi wrote on X, 'When Modi ji was making reels while handing out candies in Italy, youth in India, tormented by paper leaks, were taking to the streets demanding justice. Because the NEET Paper Leak has ruined the futures of lakhs of students. Many children have even lost their lives. And Modi ji neither took responsibility, nor removed Dharmendra Pradhan, nor uttered a single word.'

'Now, as students, NSUI and INC workers raise their voices for justice, BJP's state governments are raining lathis down on them. A government that answers students' questions with batons doesn't run on accountability--it runs on fear. But we are not the ones to be scared. We won't stop until Dharmendra Pradhan resigns and a strong, secure system is put in place to stop paper leaks in the country. This fight is for every student whose future this failed government has stolen,' the post read.

Congress workers staged a protest march in Jaipur over the NEET UG 2026 paper leak case, targeting the BJP and demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

The protest march was taken out from the Congress State Office towards the BJP Headquarters, led by Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee President Govind Singh Dotasra. Several senior leaders, including Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully, MLAs and MPs, participated in the demonstration.

As the protest escalated, police used water cannons to disperse the agitators near the BJP office.

A similar protest was staged in Bengaluru by the Youth Congress workers.

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah demanded that the Centre let states conduct the NEET exam. He said, 'The central government should apologise to the people, and Dharmendra Pradhan must resign. I want to say this to the Centre, don't conduct NEET exams, you're incapable of conducting it, let the states do the exams as states used to do.'

Former Congress MP Sandeep Dikshit also slammed the Centre and said, 'Whether it's the Delhi government or the government of India, it has become completely insensitive. They don't care at all about the condition of small business owners. Their vehicle is running in the name of religion. The government doesn't appear sensitive to any issue. Be it auto-rickshaws, taxis, labourers, or any class, who is happy?'

Karnataka Congress MLA Rizwan Arshad also demanded the scrapping of the NEET exam and medical entrance paper be controlled by the state.

Arshad told ANI, 'People of India are fed up with the BJP government, especially the youth. They can't give us a good economy, jobs, or even conduct decent examinations. Every year, the paper gets leaked, and the Modi government promises that we will be conducting it efficiently next year. Lakhs of students' futures are at stake. Many committed suicide, except for doing Hindu-Muslim and spreading poison in society, the government is fit for nothing. We demand the scrapping of NEET and the authority to conduct professional exams at the state level. We demand that the government not neglect the youth.'

Meanwhile, amidst growing concerns over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination process, triggered by the recent paper leak, the Director General (DG) of the National Testing Agency (NTA), Abhishek Singh, appeared before a Parliamentary committee to provide a detailed briefing on the NEET-UG paper leak and the steps being taken to reform the examination process.

Education Secretary Vineet Joshi was also present during the deliberations that began at 11 am today and went on for about five hours. (ANI)