‘Gen Z Our Children, Some People Misled Them’: Dharmendra Pradhan On Why He Quit As Education Minister

Se io
BJP
leade
a d
Sambalpu
MP
Dha me d a
P adha
o
Satu day
b oke
his
sile ce
o
his
esig atio
as
U io
Educatio
Mi iste ,
sayi g
attempts
we e
made
to
mislead
Ge
Z
du i g
p otests
ove
the
NEET
pape
leak
issue,
which
p ompted
him
to
offe
his
esig atio
to
P ime
Mi iste
Na e d a
Modi.

P adha
made
the
ema ks
while
add essi g
stude ts
a d
teache s
at
GM
U ive sity,
exactly
two
weeks
afte
he
stepped
dow
f om
the
U io
Cou cil
of
Mi iste s
amid
p otests
ove
the
exami atio
co t ove sy.

He
said
he
had
o
pe so al
issues
du i g
the
p otests
a d
emphasised
that
the
aspi atio s
of
I dia’s
you g
populatio
we e
mo e
impo ta t
to
him
tha
holdi g
mi iste ial
office.

“Ge
Z
is
ou
child e .
Some
people
attempted
to
mislead
them.
I
had
o
pe so al
issues
the .
At
least
two
c o e
child e
a e
bo
i
I dia
eve y
yea .
Du i g
the
last
10
yea s,
20
c o e
child e
we e
bo .
They
have
aspi atio s,
a d
they
will
make
I dia
the
‘Vishwa
Gu u’.
The
post
was
ot
impo ta t
to
me,”
P adha
said.

‘I
Had
App oached
PM
Modi’

P adha
said
he
had
app oached
Modi
a d
offe ed
to
esig
f om
the
U io
Cou cil
of
Mi iste s.

He
esig ed
as
educatio
mi iste
o
July
25,
followi g
sustai ed
p otests
ove
the
NEET
pape
leak
co t ove sy,
i cludi g
demo st atio s
at
Ja ta
Ma ta
i
Delhi.

His
ema ks
ma ked
his
fi st
detailed
public
expla atio
of
the
decisio
si ce
steppi g
dow
f om
the
mi ist y.

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P adha
Ta gets
Navee
Pat aik

At
a othe
meeti g
i
Rai akhol,
P adha
also
hit
out
at
fo me
Odisha
chief
mi iste
a d
BJD
p eside t
Navee
Pat aik
ove
p otests
agai st
him.

Refe i g
to
a
demo st atio
by
BJD
youth
a d
stude t
wi g
activists
ea
the
ai po t
whe e
p oteste s
aised
sloga s
i cludi g
“Dha me d a
P adha
Go
Back”,
he
said
such
p otests
would
ot
dete
him.

“I
am
a
fa me ‘s
so .
Eve
if
you
tell
me
to
go
back,
I
will
come
back,”
he
said.

P adha
also
accused
Pat aik
of
calli g
him
a
“disg ace
to
the
people
of
Odisha”
a d
a
“bad
pe so “,
a d
questio ed
whethe
he
had
eve
do e
a ythi g
that
b ought
shame
to
the
state.

“Have
I
eve
do e
a ythi g
that
will
shame
the
people
of
Odisha?”
he
asked.

Respo di g
to
the
c owd’s
“No”,
P adha
said
he
might
ot
have
b ought
lau els
to
Odisha
but
had
eve
disg aced
the
state
th ough
his
wo k.

“I
may
ot
be
b i gi g
lau els
fo
the
state,
but
I
have
eve
disg aced
the
people
by
my
wo k.
I
will
eve
do
a y
wo k
which
will
ta ish
the
state’s
eputatio ,”
he
said.

P adha
said
he
became
a
U io
mi iste
12
yea s
ago
with
the
blessi gs
of
Lo d
Jaga ath
a d
Goddess
Samaleswa i,
the
p esidi g
deity
of
Sambalpu .

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BJD
Hits
Back
At
P adha

BJD’s
Sambalpu
dist ict
p eside t
a d
fo me
mi iste
Rohit
Puja i
ejected
P adha ‘s
allegatio s
agai st
Pat aik
a d
said
the
BJP
leade
had
faced
c iticism
ove
the
gove me t’s
ha dli g
of
the
stude t
p otests.

“Nobody
had
defamed
P adha .
His
pa ty
a d
gove me t
have
defamed
him
by
police
eso ti g
to
lathi-cha ge,
tea
gas
a d
at ocities
du i g
the
peaceful
stude t
agitatio
at
Ja ta
Ma ta .
P adha
was
faci g
c iticism
because
of
such
i cide ts.
I
do
ot
u de sta d
why
he
blames
Pat aik
fo
the
police
excesses
o
agitati g
stude ts,”
Puja i
said.

Puja i
also
accused
the
BJP
gove me t
of
adopti g
policies
that
had
damaged
P adha ‘s
eputatio
a d
claimed
that
21
stude ts
had
died
by
suicide
i
co ectio
with
the
exami atio
co t ove sy.

BJD
Wo ke s
Detai ed

P adha ‘s
ema ks
came
amid
heighte ed
political
te sio s
i
Sambalpu ,
with
BJD
wo ke s
pla i g
p otests
agai st
him.

Sou ces
said
Sambalpu
Police
detai ed
a ou d
30
BJD
wo ke s
as
a
p ecautio a y
measu e,
a ticipati g
demo st atio s
by
the
pa ty’s
youth
a d
stude t
wi gs.

P adha ‘s
ema ks
agai st
Pat aik
we e
made
at
a
eve t
also
atte ded
by
BJD
MLA
a d
Odisha
Assembly
deputy
leade
P asa a
Acha ya.

P adha
said
he
had
co sulted
Acha ya
befo e
atte di g
the
eve t
i
view
of
the
BJD
p otests
a d
that
Acha ya
had
assu ed
him
he
would
be
welcomed.

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