NEET row: "Those who want to drag my name....," Tejashwi Yadav on Bihar Dy CM's claim
Jun 21, 2024
Patna (Bihar) [India], June 21 : Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav broke his silence on the alleged NEET paper leak case after Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sinha sought to draw a link between Yadav's personal secretary and an accused engineer.
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 probe. They want to divert the issue from the kingpin. 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."
Tejashwi further said that paper leaks have taken place in BJP-ruled states of Bihar, Gujarat and Haryana.
"Only Vijay Sinha is making these claims. The Economic Offences Wing (EOU) has never raised any question. When the arrests happened in May since then we have been raising our voices to carry out a probe. The engineer (Sikandar Yadvendu) about whom they are talking was recruited in 2021 by them in the urban development from the water resources department. Why do they want to save Amit Anand and Nitish Kumar? The truth will prevail soon. When paper leaks happened in the third phase of teachers' recruitment test (TRE) conducted by BPSC the accused got bail without going to prison," Yadav said.
Bihar Deputy CM Sinha claimed that Tejashwi's personal 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 personal 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.
Notably, Patna police has 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.