India’s education minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned on Saturday after a week of mass demonstrations by a new youth movement called the Cockroach Janata Party, who were protesting an alleged NEET exam paper leak. Pradhan said he had submitted his resignation to the prime minister “considering the situation that has arisen at Jantar Mantar and across the country” and to prevent “anti-national forces” from exploiting the unrest, adding he respected the aspirations of the country’s youth. The protests, which organisers say began in May, escalated into nationwide demonstrations this week with hundreds of thousands joining huge rallies in Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai and tens of thousands staging a sit-in at Jantar Mantar. Police response included teargas and baton charges that left hundreds injured and helped galvanise wider participation; some student leaders undertook lengthy hunger strikes. Protesters have linked the scandal to more than a dozen student suicides and had demanded Pradhan’s resignation; his announcement came hours before CJP leaders were due to meet BJP ministers to press that demand. The government had agreed to dialogue and Narendra Modi pledged to fast-track justice for the leaks but had not previously accepted the resignation demand; Pradhan’s departure hands a concrete victory to the CJP and reshapes the negotiations ahead.
