New Delhi [India], June 1 : Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, who is Chairman of Parliament Standing Committee on Education, Women and Youth Affairs, on Monday said that the panel members were unanimous in their stance on the matters concerning NEET-UG and CBSE exams and that they are confident that since Prime Minister Narendra Modi has "taken charge of the matter", it will be brought to a successful conclusion.
Digvijaya Singh, who chaired the meeting of the panel earlier in the day, said Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan should either tender his resignation or he should be dismissed.
He said PM Modi has been compelled to take matters into his own hands due to Dharmendra Pradhan's "incompetence".
"The fact is, on this issue, regardless of which party they belong to, all the members are unanimous in their stance, whether the matter concerns NEET or CBSE. We are not engaging in this discussion along party lines. We are focusing on how we can bring about improvements to this entire system," Digvijaya Singh told ANI.
"Due to Dharmendra Pradhan's incompetence, the Prime Minister himself has been compelled to take matters into his own hands. Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan should either tender his resignation or he should be dismissed...We are confident that since the Prime Minister himself has taken charge of this matter, it will be brought to a successful conclusion in every respect," he added.
The meeting of Parliament Standing Committee on Education, Women and Youth Affairs on Monday discussed the 'use of pen-and-paper testing versus CBT' and views pertaining to NEET and NTA.
Director General, National Testing Agency, Abhishek Singh and Department of Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi were among officials who presented their views. Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, was also present.
Representatives of United Doctors Front were also called for the meeting but did not present their views before the panel. Digvijaya Singh met them before the start of the meeting.
Following reports about the panel meeting in a section of media, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said that Standing Committee on Education has given "no clean chit to the Prime Minister" or his 'system' and Digvijaya Singh did not express his confidence in them.
"Mr. Digvijaya Singh noted that we have been informed by the Solicitor General that the Prime Minister is monitoring the NEET re-exam personally. For the sake of our students, we must believe that the exam will be held successfully," Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
"It is impossible for any reasonable mind to have any faith in the Pradhan Mantri and his 'system.' This 'system' botched up the investigation in the 2024 NEET-UG paper leak. This 'system' continues to deny that the NEET-UG 2026 paper was leaked, when the truth is evident to all. This 'system' has not only wrecked administration of exams in higher education, but has done so in CBSE as well," he added.
A meeting of the Parliamentary Panel on Education is also scheduled for Tuesday and will discuss Use of On-Screen-Marking (OSM) in Grade 12 CBSE Exams and issues faced by students consequently.
It will also discuss application of three-language formula in Class 9 and 10.
On Friday, members of a parliamentary panel emphasised the need to ensure the sanctity of the NEET-UG exam conducted by the National Testing Agency and plugging loopholes as they were apprised of the probe being conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the paper leak case, sources said.
This year's NEET-UG exam was cancelled and has been rescheduled for June 21.
As part of its probe into the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak case, CBI has made several arrests.
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Director Praveen Sood and National Testing Agency (NTA) Director General Abhishek Singh on Friday attended the meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Government Assurances held to review an update on the investigation into the NEET-UG paper leak. The NEET-UG exam, which was cancelled, will now be held on June 21.
Meanwhile, amid the ongoing controversy surrounding its On-Screen Marking (OSM) evaluation process, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) said it has closely monitored vulnerabilities flagged in the OnMark portal of its service provider and has deployed cybersecurity experts to strengthen the system.