Does BJP Want India's Youth To Remain Illiterate, Ignorant, Unemployed: Congress
Does BJP Want India's Youth To Remain Illiterate, Ignorant, Unemployed: Congress
M.U.H
01/06/202617
New Delhi: Launching a scathing attack at the BJP government over the alleged flawed education system, the Congress on Monday asked the ruling dispensation whether they want the country's youth to remain illiterate, ignorant and unemployed.
Reiterating its demand for accountability in the alleged irregularities linked to NEET (UG) 2026 examination and ongoing Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on-screen marking (OSM) system row, the grand old party called for the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Addressing a press conference at the party office, chairman of Congress Media Publicity Department Pawan Khera said, "In the past two years, millions of youth have fallen victim to rigging in exams, including NEET, CUET, JEE Mains and others. The issue is not confined to competitive exams anymore, it has now reached school education."
Calling the OSM system flawed, he said, "In the past, students' answer sheets used to go to the examiner in CBSE, where they would be checked, but then this system was changed. Now, answer sheets are scanned and uploaded to the portal."
The senior Congress leader said a system was created for this, and a company was hired to start the process.
"In the first round of bidding, TCS (Tata Consultancy Services) came forward, which is a well-known leader in the industry. But since there was only one company, no tender process took place. In such a situation, another round of tender happened in August 2025, in which COEMPT qualified and came forward," he said.
Alleging that the experience criterion was removed from the tender, Khera said, "As per rules, the company awarded this contract must have its own data centre. But the rule was scrapped, and it was stated that we will use a third-party cloud. All these rules were removed, and the COEMPT company qualified."
Khera also posed a volley of questions to the BJP government over the OSM system.
"Experts and teachers had pointed out the flaws in the OSM system. Why did the Modi government ignore them? On whose orders did the Narendra Modi government relax the tender conditions? Why did you change the rules to benefit one company? What is the relationship between COEMPT company and BJP that it was given priority over TCS? Why is the Modi government pushing the country's education system backwards?" he questioned.
Referring to PM’s "Mann Ki Baat" programme on Sunday, the senior Congress leader said, "I heard PM Modi's Mann Ki Baat episode yesterday, hoping that he would talk about the CBSE and NEET exam scams that have destroyed the future of many young people. But instead, he discussed the varieties of mangoes, the recipes of jal jeera, and the need to drink water during summers. Is this what the Prime Minister of India is supposed to do in the midst of a crisis that our younger generation is facing?"
Recalling the previous Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the Centre, he said, "During the UPA period, 4.77 per cent of the budget was spent on education, but today only 2.50 per cent is being spent. That means the share of education in the budget has been reduced by 50 per cent. This is a tsunami that is destroying our entire generation."
Khera alleged that this government keeps doing something or the other to distract the public, and “we all start discussing it".
