Chennai, Aug 18 (IANS) Tamil Nadu Congress Committee President, Manickam Tagore, has attacked AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami over the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test, accusing him of attempting to conceal his party’s “historic betrayal” of Tamil Nadu students by blaming the Congress.
In a post on X, Tagore said Minister Rajesh Kumar had explained the NEET issue in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. He argued that Palaniswami could not evade responsibility for the entrance examination being introduced during the AIADMK government.
Tagore pointed out that NEET was not implemented in Tamil Nadu while former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa was alive.
The examination was allowed only in 2017, after Palaniswami assumed office and, according to Tagore, placed the AIADMK at the mercy of the BJP-led Union government.
It was, therefore, the AIADMK administration, not the Congress, that enabled NEET and shattered the medical aspirations of thousands of students, he stated.
Tagore said attempts to shift the blame would not erase this historical fact.
Defending his party’s approach, the TNCC president said the Congress framed policies with the interests of poor and ordinary students in mind. It was also willing to respect public sentiment and change its decisions when circumstances demanded.
Using an analogy, he said shoes must be tailored to fit a person’s feet, rather than cutting the feet to fit the shoes.
Tagore also accused the BJP government of giving powers to the National Testing Agency and turning NEET into a commercial market dominated by coaching-centre mafias.
He cited allegations of question-paper leaks, corruption and examination irregularities, saying the system had placed students under pressure.
Referring to the death of medical aspirant S. Anitha and those of other students, Tagore alleged that the Narendra Modi government continued to defend NEET despite its consequences for disadvantaged families.
He reiterated the assurance given by Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi that any state opposed to NEET would be granted a complete exemption under a Congress government.
Challenging Palaniswami, Tagore asked whether he could persuade the BJP, the AIADMK’s ally, to make the same commitment. He questioned whether the former chief minister had the courage to break free from the BJP’s influence, confront the Modi government and unequivocally declare that Tamil Nadu did not want NEET in the interests of its students.
–IANS
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