Bengaluru: If it’s NEET, how can controversies be far away?
The Congress and other Opposition parties had repeatedly demanded the resignation of Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan after the NEET-UG exam had to be cancelled following a paper leak.
Now, it’s the turn of the BJP to go after the Congress after a rally allegedly choked Bengaluru roads on Sunday, affecting candidates headed for NEET re-test exam centres.
At least four students missed the crucial re-exam and many others panicked as they arrived just in the nick of time.
Angry parents blamed a Congress rally that resulted in traffic jams. They gave vent to their feelings and frustrations by naming Rahul Gandhi and Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, as anxious students broke down in tears.
A guardian claimed that the road outside a NEET centre had been blocked for three hours.
“NEET was announced a month ago. Entire India knew that NEET will be held on June 21. But the Congress organised a rally today. The road has been blocked for three hours. How will the children come?” the man told IANS.
Sharing the video, the BJP asked how much the Congress would stoop for its hunger for power. BJP MP Tejasvi Surya captioned it: “Watch the anxious parent narrate the ordeal of reaching late to the NEET exam hall because of Congress rally in Bengaluru.”
सत्ता की भूख में कांग्रेस आखिर और कितना नीचे गिरेगी!
NEET अभ्यर्थियों के अभिभावकों से सुनिए,
कांग्रेस ने कैसे जान-बूझकर रैली आयोजित कर सड़क जाम कर दिया, जिससे छात्रों को अपने परीक्षा केंद्रों तक पहुंचने में काफी परेशानी हुई।बेंगलुरु📍 pic.twitter.com/yo2iQG3DaZ
— BJP (@BJP4India) June 22, 2026
Students were asked to report half an hour before the re-NEET start time of 2 pm.
But with the roads clogged, there was fear and panic among students and their parents.
Parents ferrying candidates on two-wheelers tried to squeeze through rows of cars, some even tried to ride their scooters on footpaths.
Krishna Murthy, a student’s father, said they managed to reach the exam centre only at the last minute due to the rally.
“The 7-km stretch that usually takes 20 minutes took more than 35 minutes yesterday. As a father, I got panicked. I had to ride on the footpath, and the cops scolded us. But there was no option. Political rallies should happen on the outskirts, not in Bengaluru,” Murthy told NDTV on Monday.
Bengaluru, Karnataka: A parent of one of the students says, “Rahul Gandhi, D.K. Shivakumar, and even the Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru, do not seem to be concerned. Rahul Gandhi went to Kota for the cause of students, right? But because of his party’s function today, four… https://t.co/1ixZBqPcRc pic.twitter.com/No3W5edKEb
— IANS (@ians_india) June 21, 2026
BJP vs Congress erupts
BJP MP Tejasvi Surya highlighted the ordeal faced by anxious students and parents because of Congress rally in Bengaluru.
Congress responded by saying the BJP leader should first apologise for the Central government’s approach towards students’ issues.
“We should not bother about Tejasvi Surya. I think he’s looking for a ministerial berth in the reshuffle. Let him do drama. The Centre is playing with the lives of students. In the last decade alone, 89 paper leaks have happened,” thundered Congress leader and Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge.
He defended his party’s government by pointing out that students missed the NEET re-exam in BJP-ruled states like Delhi, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh as well.
Sudhanshu Trivedi, another BJP MP, said the Congress could have changed the timing of its rally, if not the day, but stuck to its schedule despite knowing that NEET re-test was be held.
“This makes it clear that Congress prioritises politics over student interests. The students’ parents have raised questions about Rahul Gandhi, but it reflects the queries of the entire country. They can’t escape answering this question,” Trivedi said.
Congress leader BK Hariprasad expressed regret for some students missed the exam, but questioned the BJP over alleged suicides by NEET aspirants over the years.
“I heard some students faced hardship to reach the hall. If indeed they have, I express my regrets for the inconveniences. However, I would like to ask the BJP: Due to their failures, many exams and preparations went to waste. Did they apologise?” Hariprasad told NDTV.
