Gujarat FIR underscores urgent need for systemic change in NEET, contends Tamil Nadu CM Stalin

Tamil Nadu CM M.K. Stalin criticizes NEET system, calls for systemic change to address malpractices and inequities.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president M.K. Stalin on June 16 said the First Information Report (FIR) registered by Gujarat Police over malpractices in NEET involving teachers and many coaching centres, underscored the “urgent need for systemic change” in NEET.

In a social media post, Mr. Stalin whose party has been a strong opponent of NEET, contended: “The Union government must stop defending this anti-student, anti-social justice, and anti-poor NEET system.” “The ongoing controversies around NEET highlighted its fundamentally inequitable nature,” he argued.

In a society where education has been denied for thousands of years, Mr. Stalin said: “We should offer more opportunities for advancement of the oppressed. On the contrary, NEET hinders the opportunities of such students. Despite the Union Education Minister’s defence of the National Testing Agency (NTA), recent events paint a different picture.”

Mr. Stalin referred to the FIR registered by the Gujarat Police over allegations of invigilators tampering with OMR sheets in exchange for monetary benefits, involving cheques worth several crore Rupees and eight blank cheques. “This conspiracy, implicating a school principal, a physics teacher, and several NEET coaching centres, underscores the urgent need for systemic change.”

The NEET, an examination “masquerading as a measure of merit, has repeatedly revealed itself as a pervasive scam affecting all levels of society,” Mr. Stalin underlined.