STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Wednesday organised a protest march in Guwahati demanding the immediate resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, alleging moral responsibility over the alleged NEET examination irregularities.
The protest march began from Rajiv Bhawan to Ganeshguri, under the leadership of Leader of the Opposition in the Assam Legislative Assembly, Wajed Ali Choudhury. The Congress also demanded a detailed discussion on the alleged examination irregularities in Parliament and the immediate withdrawal of all FIRs registered against students who participated in protests in New Delhi.
The march was organised in solidarity with the ongoing protests at Jantar Mantar and nationwide demonstrations led by the Congress over the alleged examination irregularities. Protesters raised slogans against the alleged paper leak and condemned the police action against students during the “Sansad Chalo” march in the national capital.
Speaking during the protest, Wajed Ali Choudhury reiterated the party’s demand for a parliamentary debate on the alleged paper leak issue, the resignation of the Union Education Minister, and the withdrawal of all cases filed against protesting students.
Several Congress MLAs, including Dr. Jayaprakash Das, Jakir Hussain Sikdar, Nurul Huda, Baby Begum, Asif Nazar, Zubair Anam, and Tanzil Hussain, participated in the march. Senior APCC leaders and office-bearers, including General Secretary Bipul Gogoi, Guwahati City District Congress President Swapan Das, and other leaders were also present along with a large number of party workers carrying Congress flags.
Earlier in the day, Congress workers also staged a protest outside the Assam Legislative Assembly and expressed solidarity with students and Opposition leaders participating in the indefinite hunger strike at Jantar Mantar. The demonstrations followed the detention of Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi and several other Opposition leaders by the Delhi Police during a protest in New Delhi on Tuesday.
The Congress has indicated that it will continue raising the issue both inside and outside the Assam Legislative Assembly during the ongoing Budget Session, signalling further political confrontation over the alleged examination irregularities.
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