Akhilesh Yadav compares police action at Delhi protest to Emergency, says Pradhan’s exit saved PM
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav criticized the government's handling of NEET-UG protests, comparing police tactics to the Emergency era. He argued that the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan was a strategic move to protect the Prime Minister.
Why it matters
This reflects the intense political debate in India regarding examination integrity and the government's accountability to student movements.
Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday (July 28, 2026) compared the police action against students protesting the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) paper leak with the Emergency, and claimed the Narendra Modi government had been forced to bend before an unprecedented student movement.
The resignation of former Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan reflected the pressure generated by the student agitation, Mr. Yadav said, participating in the Lok Sabha debate on the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 .
“By removing one ‘Pradhan’, you effectively saved the ‘Pradhan Mantri’,” the SP leader said, adding that the government had abandoned its “arrogance” after students compelled it to accept their demands.
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