Dharmendra Pradhan, who protested against the paper leak in 1997, is himself surrounded by the same issue today. CJP’s agitation is intense, demand for resignation continues. Is history about to take a big political turn?
Dharmendra Pradhan Resignation: When the wheel of time turns, some such pictures of history emerge which start showing a mirror to the present rulers. Today, when Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is surrounded by the country’s biggest NEET-UG paper leak controversy and demands for his resignation are echoing from all sides, at the same juncture a sensational 29-year-old past has come out. An old news report of ‘The New Indian Express’ and the claims of his old colleagues have made a revelation which everyone is surprised to know. In 1997, when Dharmendra Pradhan was a young and aggressive national secretary of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), he himself had sparked a massive student movement against the then government of Odisha. The reason was exactly this – the students’ anger against the paper leak right in front of the Secretariat!
1500 students, police lathi charge and fracture: The scene of brutal beating of Dharmendra Pradhan
Prashant Raut, who was Dharmendra Pradhan’s junior at Utkal University, revealed the layers of dreadful memories of that period and said that in 1997, when the paper leak issue came to light in Odisha, about 1,500 students under the leadership of Dharmendra Pradhan had come to surround the secretariat. The demonstration was completely peaceful, but at the behest of the government, the police started brutally lathicharge on the students. Raut recalls, “We were all very scared. In that bloody lathicharge, Dharmendra Pradhan was beaten badly by the police. He suffered serious injuries and also had some fractures in his body.” Dharmendra Pradhan, son of former BJP leader Devendra Pradhan (who worked in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee cabinet), had faced the pain for the rights of students, today the same past has come in front of his present.
Command of education from 2021, but today the biggest threat in history looms over the chair.
Dharmendra Pradhan, who reached Parliament for the first time from his father’s Deogarh Lok Sabha seat in 2004, has come a long way in politics. In 2021, he was appointed the Education Minister of the country, whereas before this he had held the charge of heavy ministries like Petroleum, Skill Development and Steel. For Pradhan, BJP MP from Sambalpur, this tenure has become the toughest litmus test of his life. The leader who once himself became the messiah of the students by shedding blood against the paper leak, today the alleged NEET scam happening right under the nose of the same leader has brought the youth of the entire country onto the streets. In Delhi, 16 metro stations have had to be closed due to security reasons and demands are being raised all around for his resignation.
Read this also… PM Modi’s big announcement amid CJP movement! Will the game of paper leak mafia end now?
That infallible maze of CJP: “Nothing less than resignation is acceptable!”
The ‘Cockroach Janata Party’ (CJP), which took charge of this entire movement, has completely opened its front against the Union Minister. The movement has now taken the form of a nationwide campaign. Prominent CJP leader Ashutosh Ranka said in very strong words on Thursday that this movement has been awakening the entire country for the last one and a half months. Ranka claimed, “Thousands of people have been standing at Jantar Mantar for the last 33 days and lakhs of people across the country are fighting against this injustice. This is a huge success of this movement.” He bluntly warned the government that the protesters were not in favor of any equivocal talks.
When will this suspense end? Protestors’ sharp attack on invitation for talks
As this political deadlock is increasing, the suspense is deepening whether Dharmendra Pradhan will be able to save his chair? CJP leader Ashutosh Ranka raised a direct and sharp question on the government’s offer of talks, saying, “Our demands were completely clear on July 20 itself, then why are our time being wasted? We only want the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. Will the government remove him from the cabinet or not? You cannot suspend a cabinet minister, then what are these talks about?” On one hand the Prime Minister is talking about fast-track courts, while on the other hand the students are not ready to back down until the minister steps down. It remains to be seen what action Pradhan, who used to lathicharge the students in the past, takes in the face of this current student anger!
Political message or historical irony?
Dharmendra Pradhan’s 1997 student movement and the current 2026 controversy have now become a part of the political discourse. Supporters call it a reminder of his struggle in student politics, while critics consider it a question of accountability. However, it is important to note that the 1997 movement and the current NEET controversy are linked to different circumstances and different events. The only similarity between the two is that the issue of paper leak was the center of discussion in both.
Read this also…Break on metro again in Delhi! 16 stations closed due to security reasons, what is the reason for increasing strictness?