TVK, DMK Step Up Demand to Scrap NEET
TVK and DMK renew calls to abolish the medical entrance exam, arguing it disadvantages students and seeking greater state control over medical education.
Tamil Nadu's ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) has intensified its demand for the abolition of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), joining the opposition in calling for the medical entrance examination to be scrapped amid nationwide protests over alleged examination irregularities.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, TVK reiterated its "uncompromising and firm stand" that NEET should be abolished altogether and urged the Centre to restore full powers to states over medical education and admissions.
Meanwhile, reaffirming the DMK's long-standing opposition to NEET, senior party leader T K S Elangovan on Wednesday called for the immediate abolition of the centralised medical entrance examination, accusing the BJP-led Centre of sustaining a system that "favours" commercial coaching centres and paper leak cartels over meritorious students.
Speaking to PTI , Elangovan said scrapping NEET has remained a core promise in the DMK's election manifestos and has consistently received public support in Tamil Nadu. He argued that the present admission system disadvantages talented students from underprivileged backgrounds who cannot afford expensive coaching, and cited the death of Ariyalur student Anitha as a defining moment in the state's opposition to the examination.
The TVK's remarks came as student protests over NEET and examination reforms gathered momentum in New Delhi. Without naming the DMK, TVK also said it would never engage in "fraudulent politics" by promising to scrap NEET merely to win votes, an apparent reference to the DMK's 2021 Assembly election pledge. Both parties, however, remain united in demanding the abolition of NEET and greater state control over medical education.