NDA, INDIA Bloc MPs face off at Parliament's Makar Dwar amid NEET protests

A direct face-off broke out between NDA and INDIA bloc MPs inside the Parliament premises on Thursday, as both sides staged simultaneous demonstrations over separate issues at Makar Dwar. While Opposition members protested against Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and the NEET paper leak controversy, NDA parliamentarians demonstrated against the oppposition's rigid stance on not discussing the issue in Parliament and accusing them of spreading fake news.

Tensions flared when CPI(M) MP John Brittas was seen pulling a poster from the hands of BJP leader Arun Singh. With MPs from both camps standing face-to-face, Parliament security personnel stepped in and formed a human chain to keep the two groups apart. Slogans were also exchanged between Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and BJP leaders during the face-off. Speaking on the clash, BJP MP Sambit Patra accused the Congress of "fleeing" from parliamentary debate, citing discussions held between senior BJP leaders, students, and activist Sonam Wangchuk over the past three days.

"You can see the kind of scenes unfolding outside Parliament today--and this is not a one-off incident. The Congress repeatedly creates such scenes outside Parliament and uses black clothes, banners, and posters inside the House to waste precious parliamentary time. The Congress Party flees from discussing the issues that actually need debate. Look at the sequence of events over the last two to three days: our leaders spoke to students as well as Sonam Wangchuk. A single consensus emerged--that there must be an in-depth discussion on the issue of exam paper leaks, and stringent laws must be enacted on the floor of the House so that the recurring paper leaks and the hardships faced by examinees over the years can be effectively contained. But the Congress does not want a debate in Parliament; it only wants to play politics," Patra said.

Echoing similar sentiments, BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi stated that the ruling coalition is fully committed to addressing the grievances of students and discussed the government's latest policy measures. "Today, we BJP and NDA MPs stood outside Parliament to demand that a debate on NEET and the education system take place inside the House--a debate the Congress is attempting to block. The BJP and NDA government is completely sensitive to this matter. The Prime Minister clearly stated today that nothing is more important than the interests of students, and he expressed his firm resolve to ensure strict punishment for the guilty. It is precisely for this reason that the decision to set up fast-track courts was taken today," Trivedi added.