Get BJP to exempt Tamil Nadu from NEET, Congress tells Palaniswami

Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) President Manickam Tagore has accused AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami of attempting to deflect responsibility for the introduction of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) in Tamil Nadu by blaming the Congress.

In a post on X, Tagore said Minister Rajesh Kumar had set out the facts surrounding the entrance examination in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. He argued that Palaniswami could not distance himself from the decision to implement NEET during the AIADMK’s tenure in government.

Tagore pointed out that Tamil Nadu had remained outside the ambit of NEET while former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa was alive. The examination was introduced in the state in 2017, after Palaniswami became chief minister and the AIADMK allegedly became dependent on the BJP-led Union government, he said.

According to the Congress leader, it was the AIADMK administration that enabled the implementation of NEET, affecting the medical aspirations of thousands of students. Attempts to rewrite the sequence of events or transfer the blame to the Congress would not alter the historical record, he added.

Defending his party, Tagore said the Congress formulated policies with the interests of poor and ordinary students in mind and was prepared to reconsider its decisions in response to public sentiment. Using an analogy, he said shoes should be made to fit a person’s feet rather than forcing the feet to fit the shoes.

He also accused the BJP-led government at the Centre of empowering the National Testing Agency and turning NEET into a commercialised system dominated by coaching centres. Tagore referred to allegations of question-paper leaks, corruption and examination irregularities, claiming that these had added to the pressure faced by students.

Referring to the death of medical aspirant S. Anitha and other students, the TNCC chief alleged that the Narendra Modi government continued to defend the examination despite its impact on disadvantaged families.

Tagore reiterated Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi’s assurance that states opposed to NEET would be granted a complete exemption if the Congress formed the government at the Centre.

He also challenged Palaniswami to persuade the BJP, the AIADMK’s ally, to make a similar commitment. Tagore asked whether the former chief minister was prepared to confront the Union government and state unequivocally that Tamil Nadu did not want NEET.

With IANS inputs