"Don't fool public, cooperate with agencies in probe": Bihar Dy CM Vijay Sinha to opposition amid paper leak row

Patna (Bihar) [India], June 22 : Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Vijay Sinha on Saturday hit out the opposition amid the paper leak row, and asked the, to cooperate with the agencies in the probe into the irregularities in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET)-UG exams.
"Are kya kya khel huaa tha inke shashan mein! (What games were played under the Rashtriya Janata Dal government?) Don't fool the public, rather cooperate with the agencies in their probe into the irregularities in the NEET-UG exams", said Sinha while speaking to ANI.
The Bihar Deputy CM further reiterated his allegations against RJD leader and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Tejashwi Yadav, stating, "I have been asking this for the past three to four days. Why is the Leader of Opposition (LoP) (Tejashwi Yadav) not able to clear the air on whether his secretary Pritam Kumar got a room booked for Sikander Kumar Yadavendu, (one of the accused in the paper leak row)?"
"Why isn't he able to answer this? There should be a probe into this. When will be unencumbered by the mentality to play with the future of kids? Under the RJD government in Bihar, two chairmen of the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) went to jail. They are well-experienced. How come the Congress party has the guts to speak on the NEET row?" he added.
Earlier, Vijay Sinha claimed that Tejashwi's secretary, Pritam Kumar had called a guest house worker of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to book a room for Sikander Kumar Yadavendu, one of the accused in the case.
He said that the word "Mantri" was used for the former Deputy CM.
"On May 1, Tejashwi Yadav's secretary Pritam Kumar called guesthouse worker Pradip Kumar to book a room for Sikander Kumar Yadavendu who was jailed in Ranchi. On May 4, Pritam Kumar called Pradip Kumar again to book the room in the NHAI guest house. The word 'Mantri' was used for Tejashwi Yadav," Sinha said at a press conference on Thursday.
The Deputy CM also sought clarification from Tejashwi Yadav regarding whether Pritam Kumar is still his Personal Secretary and who is Sikander Yadavendu.
"Tejashwi Yadav should clarify if Pritam Kumar is still his PS and he should also clarify who is Sikander Kumar Yadavendu. When Lalu Prasad Yadav was jailed in Ranchi, Sikander Kumar Yadavendu used to be at Lalu's service. He was a Junior Engineer in the irrigation department. They play with the future of the people. They do scams when they are in power and they try to influence the appointment process," Sinha alleged.
The Patna police have arrested several people including some candidates who had taken the NEET exam.
Out of them, four have been identified as Anurag Yadav, a NEET candidate, his uncle Sikandar Yadavendu, and two others - Nitish Kumar and Anand.
Meanwhile, Tejashwi Yadav has broken his silence on the allegations made against him.
He said that the BJP wanted to "divert the attention" from the kingpin so they were dragging his name.
The RJD leader said, "The INDIA alliance is united on this issue. We want the NEET exam to be immediately cancelled. The (BJP) have all the investigation agencies, they can call the PS or PA anyone for the probe. They want to divert the issue from the kingpin. For those who want to drag my name or my PA's name, this will not benefit anyone. The engineer who is talked about could be a beneficiary but Amit Anand and Nitish Kumar are the masterminds of the paper leak. The people of the country know that whenever BJP comes to power, then paper leaks happen."
The National Testing Agency (NTA) is facing criticism over alleged irregularities in this year's National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate) exams and NET exam. This resulted in several protests across the country with protestors and political parties demanding to disband the NTA.
An unprecedented 67 students achieved a perfect score of 720 marks out of 720, which added to the concerns.
The Education Ministry, meanwhile, has formed a seven-member committee to reform the examination process and the functioning of the NTA.