Congress plans conventions highlighting paper leaks and youth concerns nationwide
Two days after a crucial three-hour meeting of party general secretaries, in-charges and state presidents, the Congress on Saturday announced that Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi will spearhead a series of large student conventions across the country beginning in Rajasthan’s Kota on June 17, as the party intensifies its campaign over alleged examination scandals and issues affecting the youth.
In a detailed note, Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal outlined a series of programmes planned in the coming weeks to highlight issues impacting lakhs of students across the country, including four major national student conventions.
Venugopal said the first convention will be held in Kota on June 17, followed by events in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj on July 10, Bihar’s capital Patna on July 11, and Delhi on July 14. The conventions are expected to bring together students, job aspirants, youth organisations and educators.
As part of the nationwide campaign, the Congress will reiterate Rahul Gandhi’s call for extensive outreach among students through the NSUI, Indian Youth Congress, Pradesh Congress Committees (PCCs), District Congress Committees (DCCs) and local party units.
“Physical and digital invitations, campus outreach, interactions at coaching centres, universities, schools and youth hubs, social media campaigns, live screenings and direct engagement with students will be undertaken on a massive scale,” Venugopal said.
Reflecting Rahul Gandhi’s conviction that the aspirations of young Indians must not be sacrificed to corruption, incompetence or political indifference, the campaign aims to unite students beyond political affiliations and provide a platform for affected youth to share their experiences and demand accountability for repeated examination failures and paper leak scandals, he said.
Venugopal further said that the movement would take to the streets demands earlier articulated by Rahul Gandhi, including decentralisation of NEET, abolition of examination fees, strict legal action against those involved in paper leak racks, and accountability at the highest levels of government, including the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
“Having repeatedly raised these issues, Rahul Gandhi has made the defence of merit, fairness and equal opportunity for youth a pressing matter of national importance,” said Venugopal, who is also a Lok Sabha MP from Kerala’s Alappuzha.
The Congress’ massive student outreach campaign comes after NEET-UG 2026 was cancelled following allegations of paper leaks and administrative lapses.
The Congress and its frontal organisations, including the Indian Youth Congress and NSUI, have been holding protests across the country over the issue of paper leaks and demanding the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. The government has ordered a CBI probe into the alleged leak and assured strict action against those responsible.
