Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday announced that he had submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the recent developments surrounding the Neet-UG examination had caused him “deep anguish”.

His resignation comes amid the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) “non-negotiable” demand that he step down to be held accountable for the irregularities in various government examinations. Thousands of students have been protesting at Jantar Mantar and in other parts of the country, seeking accountability and reforms to the education system. 

  In a letter addressed to students, Pradhan said he had accepted responsibility for the Neet-UG paper leak “from the very first day” after irregularities surfaced in the May 3 examination. “The events of the last 10 days have saddened me. This is not a matter of individual prestige for me,” he wrote, adding that his priority had always been to ensure that no deserving student’s future was compromised.

He highlighted the Centre’s decision to hand over the probe to the CBI, cancel the examination and conduct a fresh computer-based test on June 21 for over 2 million candidates. Referring to the July 16 results, he said it enabled many meritorious students, including those from poor backgrounds, to succeed.

Pradhan said attempts by “people in responsible positions” to mislead students had left him deeply distressed. Referring to the protests at Jantar Mantar and elsewhere, he urged students not to let “anti-national forces” take advantage of the situation and appealed to them to remain focused on their studies.