‘BJP trying to cover up its own mistakes’: Congress chief BK Hariprasad on NEET exam row

BENGALURU: Karnataka Congress president BK Hariprasad on Monday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of attempting to deflect attention from irregularities in NEET examinations, saying the ruling party in Centre was “trying to cover up its own mistakes” by blaming Congress.

Speaking to reporters here, Hariprasad questioned the BJP over the precautions taken to prevent examination-related issues and paper leaks. “We have taken all precautions. If we had not taken precautions, thousands of people would have faced problems. What precautions has the BJP taken? They should answer that. This is a political blame game; they are trying to cover up their own mistakes and putting the blame on us,” he said.

#WATCH | Bengaluru | NEET-UG re-examination | KPCC President BK Hariprasad says, “…The Education Minister has not resigned. UPSC papers have leaked, and CBSE exam papers have also leaked. Students who were supposed to be stopped could not reach the exam centres, but they still… pic.twitter.com/nam736yt7N

— ANI (@ANI) June 22, 2026

On Sunday, the high-stakes re-examination for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG) 2026 concluded across the country and 14 destinations abroad, even as the process remained under the shadow of the paper leak controversy.

The Karnataka Congress chief also referred to previous controversies surrounding examination papers and criticised the Centre over the handling of such issues.

“The Education Minister has not resigned. UPSC papers have leaked, and CBSE exam papers have also leaked. Students who were supposed to be stopped could not reach the exam centres, but they still wrote the exams. They themselves say they wrote the exams, but they have spoken against the hardship they faced in reaching the exam centre,” Hariprasad said.

He asserted that Congress had made elaborate arrangements to avoid inconvenience to students and commuters on the day of the examination.

बेंगलुरु में NEET UG re-exam देने आई बच्चियाँ फूट-फूटकर रोने लगीं। थोड़ी देर से पहुँचने पर उन्हें परीक्षा नहीं देने दी गई।

सरकार बच्चों को और कितनी यातनाएँ देगी? पहले आपके भ्रष्टाचार के कारण उनकी परीक्षा रद्द हुई, फिर उन्हें दोबारा परीक्षा देने के लिए मजबूर किया गया। अब थोड़ी सी… pic.twitter.com/uAjwoqUdYw

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) June 21, 2026

“Unfortunately, if anything like this has happened, it should not have happened. We had taken all precautions because we had a programme on Sunday to avoid any traffic hassles. We had discussed with the police and with our Congress colleagues. Several workers made elaborate arrangements to control traffic,” he said.

Hariprasad further said the Congress would constitute a team to inquire into the difficulties faced by students during the NEET-UG re-examination and assured assistance to those affected.

“For some reason, some children might not have been able to reach. I do not know the reason, but we will send a Congress team to find out what kind of hardship they faced. If any compensation is required, we will compensate. Those who leaked the question papers should have been punished,” he added.

The remarks come amid the fresh controversy surrounding the NEET-UG re-examination after which the National Testing Agency (NTA) and the Centre called out the “fake video” being circulated on social media, which claimed that the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination question paper was leaked on Telegram.

The fact-check unit of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) on Monday termed the video fake, stating “reports alleging paper leak are unfounded and false”. (ANI)