Rahul Gandhi writes to PM, urges him to facilitate debate in LS on NEET

Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting his government to facilitate a debate on the medical entrance exam NEET issue in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, 3 July.

He said the Opposition's request to discuss NEET was denied in both Houses of Parliament on 28 June as well as on Monday, 1 July, and added that the Lok Sabha speaker had assured the opposition that he would discuss the matter with the government.

"I am writing to request for a debate in Parliament on NEET," Gandhi said in his letter to the prime minister on Tuesday.

"Our aim is to engage constructively to find a way forward. At this moment, our only concern is the welfare of nearly 24 lakh NEET aspirants across India," he said.

"The NEET examination deserves immediate attention because it has exposed the deep rot in our higher education system. The past seven years have seen over 70 paper leaks, affecting over 2 crore students," the Congress leader added.

"Our students deserve answers. A parliamentary debate is the first step towards rebuilding and restoring their faith," he said.

"Given the urgency of the matter, I request the government to facilitate a debate in the House tomorrow. I believe that it would be fitting if you were to lead this debate in the interest of the students," Gandhi said.

The NEET-UG exam, conducted by the NTA, is for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and other related courses in government and private institutions across India.

NEET-UG, 2024, was held on 5 May across 4,750 centres and around 24 lakh candidates appeared for it.

Initially expected on 14 June, the results were announced on 4 June due to early completion of answer sheet evaluations.

The allegations of irregularities, including paper leaks, have led to protests in several cities and sparring between rival political parties.