Bihar bandh: Protests rock state amid NEET row, clashes erupt; Tej Pratap Yadav detained | Patna News
PATNA: A Bihar bandh called over the alleged NEET paper leak triggered protests across the state on Saturday, with RJD leader Tej Pratap Yadav and several protesters detained as police maintained heavy security in sensitive districts.Additional police personnel were deployed at key locations, including Gandhi Maidan in Patna, while flag marches were conducted in vulnerable areas. Security was tightened in Patna, Siwan, Jehanabad, Sheikhpura and Rohtas, among other districts, and private schools in Patna remained closed during the bandh. Despite the shutdown call, police said normal life in the state capital was largely unaffected.Left-wing student organisations, including the All India Students’ Association (AISA) and the Revolutionary Youth Association (RYA), staged demonstrations in several districts. In Samastipur, protesters blocked the Samastipur-Patna road by burning tyres and raising slogans against the government. They also demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged NEET paper leak.In Siwan, AISA, RYA and other left-wing groups held protests at JP Chowk, accusing the government of suppressing student demonstrations.Former MLA and CPI(ML) leader Amarjeet Kushwaha alleged that students protesting in both Delhi and Patna had faced excessive police action.“Protest has been underway at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar for the last 26 days. Students also came out on the streets of Patna on Wednesday. However, both in Delhi and in Patna, they faced brutal police action. Even women and girls were not spared,” he said.AISA’s Bihar state president, Dhananjay, also criticised the government’s response, alleging that students were being targeted for demanding the education minister’s resignation.“We were on the streets demanding the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. This government is trying to put all of us in jail. The kind of arrests and treatment being meted out to the youth and students of Bihar is unacceptable,” he said.Meanwhile, CPI(ML) MLA Sandeep Saurav, who was arrested following violence during NEET-related protests in Patna earlier this week, said the agitation would continue until the Union education minister resigns.“We have to fight and win, and we will take Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation. Until then, the youth of the entire country will continue to raise their voice,” Saurav said.The bandh comes days after violent clashes and stone-pelting during NEET-linked protests in Patna, as political tensions continue to escalate over the examination and the alleged police crackdown on student demonstrators.
