Veteran Congress leader Digvijaya Singh has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to release a comprehensive ‘White Paper’ on paper leaks and irregularities in National Testing Agency (NTA)-conducted examinations. Singh, who chairs the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth, and Sports, highlighted the need for information on data breaches during both Congress and BJP governments to alleviate uncertainty and stress among exam aspirants.
Singh emphasized that paper leaks have occurred at various levels of government, citing examples like the Vyapam scam in Madhya Pradesh, which surfaced in 2013. He pointed out that only part of the Vyapam investigation was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation, with the rest pending at the state level, leaving many involved in the scam unpunished even two decades later.
In his communication with PM Modi, Singh sought details on the ongoing investigations into paper leaks, regardless of the ruling party. He questioned the status of culprits, punishments meted out, bail situations, and the withdrawal of cases, underscoring the need for accountability and transparency in such matters.
Regarding the recent controversy surrounding Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and the CBSE, Singh called for Pradhan’s resignation over alleged rule changes and favoritism towards certain vendors. He raised concerns about a vendor, allegedly linked to Pradhan, receiving contracts over reputed companies like TCS, and highlighted discrepancies in the vendor’s operations across different states.
Singh also pointed out the renaming of a controversial company involved in the CBSE matter and the subsequent transfers of CBSE officials in connection with the On-Screen marking controversy, indicating a broader issue of accountability and governance in educational assessments.
