Parliament remained paralysed for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday as continuing protests by the Opposition over the NEET paper leak controversy and its demand for the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan forced repeated adjournments in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, with no legislative business transacted.
According to PTI, the deadlock continued amid loud sloganeering by Opposition members, while MPs from both the ruling NDA and the INDIA bloc held rival demonstrations outside Parliament, accusing each other of politicising the issue.
Outside the Makar Dwar of Parliament, NDA MPs raised slogans such as “Sharam Karo” and “Vande Mataram”, accusing the Opposition of exploiting the paper leak issue for political gains. Opposition MPs, in turn, reiterated their demand for Pradhan’s resignation and accused the government of failing students Amid the stalemate, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, TMC MPs Saugata Roy and Mahua Moitra met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.
Later, Opposition MPs of the INDIA bloc gathered at Rahul Gandhi’s residence before attempting to proceed to Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial at Gandhi Smriti on Tees January Marg as a mark of solidarity with protesting students. According to The Indian Express, the leaders boarded a bus after police prevented them from heading towards India Gate.
“Our students are on the road, so all the Opposition MPs felt that we should also be on the road. We wanted to go to India Gate but were stopped. Then we decided to go to Tees January (Gandhi Smriti). They have parked the bus here and left it. We are not able to go ahead, but the main message is to the students -we are with you,” Rahul Gandhi said.
The political standoff coincided with continuing protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which announced a nationwide protest on Friday, urging citizens to “stand in solidarity with victims of police brutality across India.” They also continue to demand the resignation of the Education minister.
In a post on X, the CJP appealed to participants to read out the students’ demands at protest venues and urged student unions and other organisations to coordinate permissions and logistics for demonstrations.
The student group has continued to reject the Centre’s invitation for talks. Union Minister Jitendra Singh said the government had reached out to CJP leaders four times without receiving a response. After meeting Home Minister Amit Shah, Dr Jitendra Singh said the government’s “doors are always open” and invited CJP representatives to meet Union Minister J.P. Nadda at his residence or office—an offer the group had earlier rejected, insisting discussions should be held at a neutral venue near Jantar Mantar.
The Congress also dismissed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement on Wednesday to establish fast-track courts for paper leak cases as inadequate. PTI reported that Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh termed the proposal “too little, too late” and said students were seeking genuine accountability rather than “half-measures.” “The demands are clear: Sack Mantri Pradhan. Apologise to the students. Take action against those who assaulted them,” Ramesh said in a post on X. In addition shopkeepers in Cannaught place were asked to close their shops by 6.30 pm in the evening from their shopkeepers traders association.
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