CHENNAI — Expanding the political front against national entrance examinations, Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) has demanded the complete abolition of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), rejecting reform efforts centered solely on fixing paper leak irregularities.
In a formal statement released on Tuesday, the ruling TVK urged the Union Government to restore state autonomy over medical admissions, while taking sharp aim at opposition rivals over historic campaign promises.
Key Statements & Federal Policy Demands
The TVK’s official position outlines both immediate and long-term constitutional reforms for medical education governance in Tamil Nadu:
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Complete Scrapping of NEET: Moving beyond criticism of administrative lapses, TVK affirmed its uncompromising stand that NEET should be scrapped entirely in favor of state-managed selection criteria.
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Constitutional Shift to State List: TVK demanded that education be moved back from the Concurrent List to the State List. As an interim solution, the party proposed creating a “Special Concurrent List” to immediately grant state governments full statutory authority over medical admissions.
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Political Volleys with Opposition: The party targeted the main opposition DMK, accusing it of “fraudulent politics” and misleading voters during past assembly campaigns regarding the state’s capacity to unilaterally abolish the exam.
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Secretariat Protest Context: The statement arrived amid rising domestic political friction, following the brief detention of popular rap singer ‘Therukkural’ Arivu after he raised anti-NEET slogans outside the Tamil Nadu Secretariat at Fort St. George.
