Rahul says education system needs to be rebuilt, urges consensus on paper leaks
Congress leader invokes father’s grief over daughter’s suicide at Dehradun rally, demanding a stress‑free, student‑centric system free of corruption
The education system must be rebuilt from scratch so that a safe, stress-free environment is created for children, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said in a social media post on Saturday (July 18), calling for a political consensus on the issue of paper leaks, asserting that it’s everyone’s responsibility.
Rahul shared on X a video clip from his Chhatron ki Goonj rally in Dehradun on Friday (July 17), where he called on stage Rajesh Kumar, father of Riya Kumari who died by suicide after the cancellation of NEET-UG in May over allegations of paper leak.
A father’s cry
In his post in Hindi on X, Rahul said, “Riya’s father, Rajesh ji, was so shattered by the loss of his daughter that it brought tears to the eyes of everyone who saw him. This is not the pain of just one family; the paper leak has snatched children away from many such families.”
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“Behind every name, there is a mother and a father, for whom there is no longer a tomorrow,” the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
Rajesh Kumar gave a heart-rending speech on stage, saying whatever happened with his daughter and his family should not happen with anyone else. He narrated how Riya had complained that while students face a barrage of rules while taking these exams, someone leaks the paper and all their effort goes in vain, and urged the Congress leader to raise this issue in Parliament.
‘Everyone’s responsibility’
“We do not accept that our children have to go through this, we do not accept that our parents have to go through this, we do not accept that India has to go through this,” Rahul said on stage.
He added that no political party or organisation should have a hold on any educational institutions, and batted for a political consensus on the issue of paper leaks, calling it everyone’s responsibility.
Also read: NEET re-exam 2026: Leak crisis exposes deeper flaws in India’s exam system
“This system must be rebuilt from scratch—creating an environment where children find safety instead of stress, and where parents reap the rewards of their sacrifices, not tears,” he wrote on X.
‘Entire education system involved in paper leaks’
Addressing the rally in Dehradun on Friday evening, he alleged that the entire education system, from top to bottom, is involved in paper leaks due to which 7.5 crore students have suffered so far.
The entire structure is involved—from coaching centres, exam centres, paper setters, translators, transporters and vendors to the NTA and the (education) ministry at the top, he alleged.
While cases of paper leaks are rising by the day due to this “corrupt system”, no action against the guilty, including conviction, has been taken till now, Rahul said.
Testing system ‘outdated’
He also claimed that the present testing system is outdated, and needs to be updated from the 19th century to the 21st century.
Also read: Why Wangchuk's strike may not become an Anna Hazare-like movement
“Today’s system is examiner-centric, government-centric and testing-centric, whereas we want a student-centric system. The testing system should be for the students and it must be flexible.
“There should be a secure question bank and randomised question papers. We can randomise a question paper with the help of technology, similar to GMAT and other exams,” Rahul said.
Divided in protest
On Saturday, as Rahul was sharing this post, activist-environmentalist-educationist Sonam Wangchuk was being treated at Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital after being on a hunger strike for 21 days at Jantar mantar.
Wangchuk, who started the indefinite fast as part of the protest of the satirical Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) over the same exam paper leak issue, was shifted to hospital based on a court order as his health deteriorated on the 21st day of strike. Several students were also on a hunger strike with him.
The Congress, and Rahul in particular, faced severe criticism from the CJP for not backing their protest, though the Congress slammed the government for forcibly removing Wangchuk and the CJP protesters from Jantar Mantar.
(With agency inputs)