'Such an insult to UP is...': BJP's Jitin Prasada hits out at Shashi Tharoor

Union Minister Jitin Prasada on Sunday reacted very sharply to an 'insulting' post by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor. The Congress leader shared an examination paper sheet, where the student described Uttar Pradesh as a state where answers are known in advance. 

Prasada said that he did not see the humour in "running down my state and its people by stereotyping them with such condemnable remarks". He said such an insult to UP was "deplorable and must be condemned in strongest words".

Tharoor's post comes amid irregularities in competitive examinations like NEET-UG and paper-leak allegations against the Centre.

In the last few days, irregularities and paper leaks were reported in NEET-UG exams. The Centre then cancelled the UGC-NET exams, and postponed the NEET-PG examination as a 'precautionary measure'. 

The central government also shunted out National Testing Agency (NTA) Director General Subodh Singh and handed over the probe into irregularities in NEET-UG to the CBI. The Education Ministry also set up a seven-member panel headed by former ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan to review the agency's functioning and recommend exam reforms. 

The Congress-led opposition hit out at the government and alleged that the education system had been "ruined" under the Modi government. "Now NEET-PG is also postponed. This is another unfortunate example of the education system that has been ruined under the rule of Narendra Modi," former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi said. "Now it is clear -- Modi, who used to silently watch the spectacle every time -- is completely helpless in front of the paper leak racket and education mafia." 

The UGC-NET was cancelled on Wednesday, following inputs that the integrity of the exam was compromised. The matter is being probed by the CBI. Bihar Police on Friday night detained six more people from Jharkhand's Deoghar district in connection with the alleged leak of NEET paper in the state.
 
Bihar's Economic Offences Unit has arrested 13 people, including prime suspect Sikandar Yadavendu. The EOU is also exploring the "possibility of conducting narco analysis and brain mapping tests" of the accused, sources told news agency PTI. They also indicated that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) might investigate the money laundering aspect. 

Meanwhile, the Centre has operationalised a stringent law that aims to curb malpractices and irregularities in competitive examinations with provisions entailing a maximum jail term of 10 years and a fine of up to Rs 1 crore for offenders. Nearly four months after President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent to The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, the Personnel Ministry on Friday night notified the law.