Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced his resignation on Saturday, saying he had submitted his resignation letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure that the ongoing student unrest over the NEET-UG examination controversy does not get “exploited by anti-national forces” and that no student’s future gets “entangled in legal complications.”
In a letter posted on his social media handle at 2:18 PM, Pradhan said the decision was not driven by concerns over “personal reputation,” but by a desire to protect the interests of India’s youth and ensure students remain focused on their studies and careers rather than the unfolding political crisis.
Background: The NEET-UG Controversy
Gold Rate
July 23 ,2026 - Time 10.30Hrs
The resignation comes weeks after irregularities surfaced in the NEET-UG examination conducted on May 3, 2026. The government swiftly handed the matter over to the CBI for investigation, cancelled the exam, and announced a re-examination, which was held on June 21 after coordination between central and state authorities, including district administrations, to ensure the smooth conduct of the exam for over 20 lakh students. The government also announced that future editions of the exam would shift to computer-based testing (CBT) starting next year.
Results were declared on July 16, which Pradhan described as satisfactory, noting that several meritorious students from underprivileged backgrounds had succeeded despite the disruption.
However, the controversy triggered sustained protests, most notably at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, led by the youth-driven Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) along with opposition parties, who had been demanding Pradhan’s resignation for months. The protests intensified after a police crackdown on a “Sansad Chalo” march on July 20 left scores of demonstrators injured, and gained further momentum after activist Sonam Wangchuk’s prolonged hunger strike in support of the movement.
As recently as Friday, government sources had indicated Pradhan was unlikely to resign, with officials reportedly arguing that stepping down would amount to “running away” from the problem rather than fixing it. Talks between government representatives, including Union Ministers J.P. Nadda and Jitendra Singh, and CJP leaders had continued through the week without resolution on the resignation demand, even as the government agreed in principle to other CJP demands, including compensation for the families of NEET aspirants who died by suicide and the withdrawal of cases against protesting students.
Pradhan’s Statement
In his letter, Pradhan reflected on more than four decades associated with students, teachers and education reform, and expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for the opportunity to serve. He said he was “deeply pained” by developments over the past ten days and reaffirmed his faith in the strength of India’s democracy and its youth, whom he described as the “builders and architects” of a developed India.
He thanked the Prime Minister, his cabinet colleagues, and ministry officials for their support during his tenure, and said national service would remain his highest priority going forward. He closed the letter invoking the blessings of Lord Jagannath and pledging continued commitment to the people of Odisha and the country’s youth.
मर्डर केस की मुख्य महिला आरोपी 4 साल से थी फरार #nagpurnews...
कुख्यात 'काल्या' हथियार समेत गिरफ्तार #nagpurnews #Crime #crimebranch #Kalya #Arrest #WeaponSeized
बस डिपो में लगी क्लास! #Buldhana #STBus #StudentProtest #MaharashtraNews #Education #ShivSenaUBT
आषाढ़ी एकादशी पर शेगांव में भक्तों का जनसैलाब!#Shegaon #GajananMaharaj #AshadhiEkadashi #Maharashtra
फडणवीस ने की विठ्ठल-रुक्मिणी की महापूजा #maharashtranews #pandarpur #newsupdate #maharashtra #news
गोंदिया में किन्नर समाज की भव्य शोभायात्रा #vidarbhanews #gondia #vidarbha #newsupdate #maharashtra
