Indian education minister resigns after leaked exam scandal sparks youth-led protests across the country

The protest trigger

The resignation caps weeks of demonstrations that began on 6 June in New Delhi, organized by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). The movement took its name after an Indian judge called unemployed youth "lazy cockroaches", a label the students reclaimed. The immediate trigger was the May leak of the NEET medical entrance exam, a test taken by roughly 2 million to 2.2 million candidates competing for around 130,000 medical school places. Exam questions were sold for sums as high as 5 million rupees (about 45,000 euros), according to one report. The results were invalidated, forcing students to retake the test. Some students were reported by local media to have taken their own lives after the cancellation.

Gezien de situatie die is ontstaan op Jantar Mantar en in het hele land heb ik mijn ontslagbrief naar de premier gestuurd.

Crackdown and escalation

The protests grew steadily until Monday, when an estimated 50,000 to 100,000 people marched toward the parliament in New Delhi. Authorities responded by cutting internet access and deploying security forces who used tear gas, bamboo sticks, and according to some reports, pellet guns and stun guns. Images of wounded and crying young people circulated rapidly on social media, drawing further criticism of Prime Minister Modi's government. Since that crackdown, protests spread to other Indian cities, and solidarity demonstrations were held in New York, London, Berlin, and Amsterdam, where over two hundred people gathered at Museumplein on Thursday evening.

Minister steps down

Pradhan announced his resignation on X on Saturday, at virtually the same moment police were again using tear gas to disperse protesters in New Delhi, just hours before a third round of talks between student representatives and government members. He wrote that he had "deep respect for the aspirations, feelings, and legitimate expectations of the youth of the country" and that he wanted to prevent "anti-national forces from exploiting this situation." His departure is a rare political event: he is only the second minister to resign under public pressure since Modi's BJP came to power in 2014. The first was former junior foreign minister M.J. Akbar, who resigned in 2018 over sexual harassment allegations. Pradhan, described as "BJP's money man" for his fundraising prowess, was a close Modi confidant.

Unresolved demands

Following Pradhan's resignation, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke told supporters at the Jantar Mantar protest site, "We have achieved it." The CJP board initially announced protests would cease. However, a later report indicated the movement is not ending its campaign. It still holds two conditions: financial compensation for the families of students who committed suicide after the exam scandal, and action against the police officers who used force against demonstrators during the Monday march. A CJP spokesperson also stated they want all legal proceedings against protesters withdrawn.

We hebben het voor elkaar gekregen.

Broader grievances

Beyond the exam leak, the demonstrations reflect deeper anger over unemployment, corruption, and a lack of government accountability. The protesters see the leaked exam as one more piece of evidence of widespread graft in India's education system. It remains unclear who will succeed Pradhan as education minister.