Rahul Gandhi slams NTA, Modi over UGC-NET retest for 3 subjects

Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the National Testing Agency's (NTA) decision to conduct fresh UGC-NET examinations for English, Commerce and Sociology. The NTA cancelled the June exams after a committee found errors including repeated questions, misspelt names and distorted book titles, The Times of India and The Hindu report.

In a post on X, Gandhi said exams held from June 22 to 30 were cancelled nearly two months later, forcing thousands of candidates to retake them in September. "NTA makes the mistake but the student serves the sentence," he said, demanding accountability from the NTA leadership. He also questioned whether the papers were leaked before the exam, alleging the education system had become "an extraction machine" that takes money, years and mental health without returning a job, The Hindu reported.

The NTA announced retests for the three subjects on September 9 and 10. The agency said a committee found the errors could not be resolved by dropping defective questions, making fresh exams necessary, Deccan Herald reported. Gandhi said former education minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation was "the first step, not the last" and demanded that PM Modi answer for the system.