Politics · Minister Resigns · ArchiveIndia's Education Minister Resigns After Youth Protests Over Exam LeaksAired July 25, 2026 at 5:16 PM UTCWritten September 7, 2026 at 9:22 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00A stunning victory for student0:01protesters in India tonight. Education0:03Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has resigned0:05effective immediately after a 37-day0:07youth movement erupted over leaked0:09medical entrance exams. The resignations0:11came after the NEET UG 2026 scandal that0:14has now been linked to at least 200:15student suicides across the country. The0:17movement known as the Cockroach Janata0:19Party drew thousands of students to New0:21Delhi's historic Jantar Mantar demanding0:23accountability from the highest levels0:25of government. At the center of it all,0:27Jantar Mantar, the centuries-old0:29observatory that has become a landmark0:31for protest in the capital. For over a0:33month, students camped here in monsoon0:35rains refusing to leave until the0:36government listened. The protest0:38culminated on July 20th when a march on0:40parliament, a Chalo Sansad rally, was0:42met with batons and tear gas. Police0:44detained more than 100 demonstrators,0:46but the crackdown did not break the0:48movement. It steeled it. Behind this0:50political crisis is a human tragedy. 200:53students are confirmed to have taken0:55their own lives after the exam paper0:56leaks shattered their hopes of a medical0:58career. The NEET UG is the gateway for1:00hundreds of thousands of aspiring1:02doctors. When leaked answer sheets made1:04a mockery of the system, families say1:06their children saw no way forward. The1:07protest leader Abhijay Dipki became the1:10face of a generation demanding change.1:12The movement named itself after a1:13deliberately provocative symbol, the1:15cockroach, something that survives any1:17attempt to crush it. And in the end, the1:19government blinked. Pradhan submitted1:21his resignation on July 25th. His letter1:24cited internal obstructionism within the1:25government saying it caused him {quote}1:27great anguish. The prime minister1:29accepted resignation and gave additional1:31charge of the ministry to Pralhad Joshi.1:33The former minister's parting message1:35pointed squarely at resistance inside1:37the very system he was trying to reform.1:39But protesters say the resignations were1:41only the first step. The government1:42agreed to a sweeping set of demands. All1:45police cases against student protesters1:46are being dropped. Families of the 201:49victims will receive compensation of1:50roughly 90,000 euros each. And on July1:5327th, the government will introduce the1:55Public Examinations Prevention of Unfair1:57Means Amendment Bill, a new1:59anti-cheating law with strict penalties.2:01In a video message, Prime Minister2:02Narendra Modi thanked the protesters for2:05what he called their insightful2:06suggestions, an unusual acknowledgement2:08from the top of government to a movement2:10that began as a student outcry and ended2:12with a minister's resignation. The new2:14anti-cheating bill goes before2:16parliament on Tuesday. Students have2:18pledged to keep watch from their phones2:19and protest grounds, making sure the2:21laws are not just passed but enforced.2:24The cockroaches, they say, are not going2:25anywhere.Explore with HeyDexThe shortThe short ↗