Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday called on the grieving kin of a 22-year-old youth, a NEET aspirant, who died by suicide in Rajasthan’s Sikar following the cancellation of the NEET UG 2026 exam. The Congress leader used the emotionally charged visit to launch a sharp attack on the Union Government, accusing it of allowing an ‘exam mafia’ to flourish while students across the country continue to suffer under mounting academic pressure coupled with uncertainty. 

Gandhi shares photos on ‘X’

The Congress MP shared the photographs from his visit on his official ‘X’ handle, describing the student’s death as a consequence of a ‘broken and corrupt system’ rather than an act of suicide. He wrote in the post, “Today, I met the family of the brilliant student Pradeep Meghwal, who was so devastated by the NEET paper leak that he took his own life. Their pain cannot be contained in words. A mother and father have lost their son, and they were guilty of nothing.” 

Gandhi targets PM Modi, Union HM Shah

Gandhi continued by saying that millions of students across India are living under constant stress due to cutthroat competition and uncertainty over their future careers. He stated that when a paper leak unfolds, it is not just one examination that collapses. A child’s dream breaks, and an entire family is shattered. 

He then took aim at Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister (HM) Amit Shah, accusing the Centre of failing to safeguard the country’s examination system. He wrote, “Those who handed the examination system over to mafias, and who are still clinging to their chairs today- the Modi-Shah duo is accountable to this family.”

Meghwal was preparing for years in Sikar

Pradeep Meghwal, a resident of Badya Nala village in Rajasthan’s Jhunjhunu district, had been preparing for the pan-India medical entrance exam in Sikar for the past three to four years. According to his kin, he had been under severe mental stress after reports of the NEET UG 2026 paper leak emerged. 

Following the controversy, the exam, which was held on May 3, was cancelled, sparking anxiety and anger among lakhs of candidates across the country. Pradeep, according to his family members, spoke to his father moments before taking the extreme step.