Indian Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has resigned, handing a major victory to youth protesters nationwide who had demanded that he quit to take responsibility for examination paper leaks.
Indian youth protesters called off weeks of demonstrations and celebrated in the streets on Saturday after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government bowed to demands.
Protesters have been calling for accountability after allegations that entrance exams to esteemed medical schools had been leaked and sold, with the unrest led by a youth campaign known as the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP).
Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced his resignation on Saturday, bowing to mounting pressure after tens of thousands of students and supporters took to the streets demanding his removal and sweeping reforms to India’s examination system.
The worst political crisis of Modi’s third term in office had peaked this week when thousands of protesters marched on parliament, with police using tear gas to control them. Supporting events were held across the country – Mumbai, Kerala, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Goa and came from parents, farmers and countless film stars and celebrities.
Pradhan’s resignation is “a victory of peace, patience & perseverance,” activist Sonam Wangchuk, who was on a hunger strike for 26 days to support the youth movement, wrote on X. He was supported by Rahul Gandhi, and other prominent leaders of the opposition. Indian diaspora groups staged demonstrations across the UK, Ireland, Canada, Germany and the Netherlands in support of the Cockroach Janta Party.
Opposition Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi welcomed the education minister’s resignation, but said those who hurt the students during the protests “have to be held accountable” and Modi must apologise for using such force.
Celebrations erupted at the Jantar Mantar protest site in the capital Delhi, with thousands of youngsters chanting victory slogans and dancing.
The youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) movement, which spearheaded the demonstrations, said it would end its protests.
“We have done it,” said Abhijeet Dipke, CJP’s founder, to loud cheers at the site. Youngsters shouted “Jai Hind”, a patriotic slogan meaning “Victory to India”, as the national anthem played on loudspeakers and sweets were distributed.
The movement had three other demands apart from Pradhan’s sacking: 10 million rupees ($103,554) to the families of all students who died by suicide after being told to retake exams, no punitive action against people who participated in the protests, and a public apology from Delhi Police and the Rapid Action Force paramilitary over the attacks on the protesters.
After news of Pradhan’s resignation, federal authorities restored access to the mobile internet around the protest site, after blocking it for most of the week. Delhi Metro rail stations in and around the area that were closed for much of four days this week were also opened.
“Young generation is here. This is a win for the constitution,” protester Tluanga Ralte said, walking with a copy of the Indian constitution at the protest site after Pradhan’s resignation. “We are not a lazy generation.”
Pradhan, 57, a senior member of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party and the son of a veteran BJP leader, had been education minister since 2021.
Pradhan, who in the past was mentioned as a potential BJP president, is only the second minister to resign following a scandal since Modi came to power in 2014.
M.J. Akbar resigned as junior foreign minister in October 2018 to fight allegations of sexual harassment made by more than a dozen women during India’s #MeToo movement.
“The Cockroach Janta Party declares that we withdraw the agitation in good faith,” CJP spokesperson Saurav Das said.
“All the demands raised by our team have been accepted, therefore we request protesters to withdraw and peacefully go home,” spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka added.
“The bottom line is we have won, your struggle, hard work, and patience have paid off,” Ranka told cheering crowds at Jantar Mantar on returning from the talks, and urged them to withdraw peacefully.
Scenes of police using tear gas to control protesters had also fuelled public anger, although authorities defended their actions saying they were only enforcing the law. Police on Monday injured many students, launching baton charges and even alleged pellet guns to deter crowds of protesters.
Roads around the central business district of Connaught Place near the protest site were shut amid celebrations and a swelling crowd of thousands of protesters.
Youths calling themselves “cockroaches” had taken to the streets since late June, after national exam papers were leaked forcing a resit which affected 2 million students and galvanised anger about the lack of prospects for young Indians.
The resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, the students’ primary demand, came as a surprise because Modi has a reputation for refusing to act under pressure. Modi’s party faces key state elections next year. Similar youth-led protest movements brought down governments in neighbouring Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh in recent years.
Health Minister J.P. Nadda and Jitendra Singh, a junior minister in Modi’s office, held a joint press conference with two CJP spokespersons after another round of talks following Pradhan’s resignation.
(Agencies; Picture Courtesy: Reuters)
