New Delhi: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK supremo MK Stalin on Friday informed the Assembly that the state bill has been rejected by the Center after the bill seeking exemption from the National Eligibility-Sanskrit Test (NEET) to the presidency. Rejection was called “dark chapter in federalism”, Stalin said that the state would continue its fight against NEET and announce an all-party meeting on 9 April to discuss the next stages.
“Awing is a dark chapter in rejection federalism,” Stalin said, expressing disappointment over the decision of the Center. He accused the central government of ignoring the wishes of the people of Tamil Nadu and the unanimous decision of the state assembly.
The bill, originally passed in 2021 and was re -adopted after being returned by Governor RN Ravi in 2022, proposed that admission to medical courses in Tamil Nadu is based on class 12 marks instead of NEET entrance examination only.
Stalin said in the assembly, “Despite the Tamil Nadu government submit all the necessary explanations through various ministries, the central government has now rejected exemption from NEET.”
He said that NEET had made it difficult for poor and rural background students to pursue medical education, which would, in turn, will affect health services in backward areas of the state.
The NEET debate has been emotionally charged in Tamil Nadu, where many candidates have died of suicide in recent years, including S Anita in 2017 – a case that expressed widespread resentment.
AIADMK, BJP and other opposition parties used opportunity to hit DMK. Opposition leader Edappi’s Palaniswami accused the DMK of misleading the public on the NEET issue.
“DMK came to power promising to cancel NEET in 2021. Deputy Chief Minister Udayidhi Stalin also said that he knows the mystery to end it. But nothing has been done. Now, the Chief Minister has called for a consensus meeting. How long will DMK continue to cheat people?” Palaniswami asked, after talking to the media, his party staged a walkout on a separate issue.
Tamil Nadu BJP chief Annamalai Said that DMK’s “NEET drama” ended with the rejection of the President of Bill. “The chapter is closed,” he said that the state could no longer convict the Governor or the President.
“I challenge the Chief Minister – go to the Supreme Court. If you have courage, fight it legally. NEET was implemented due to the Apex Court verdict, and the DMK knows it,” Annamalai said while talking to reporters in Coimbatore.
He further claimed that the DMK would not contact the court by knowing the origin of NEET in his decisions of the Supreme Court.
Now with official rejection, all will be eyeing the next step of the DMK -led government, as the pressure of political opponents and the public.
