Sourav Das vows FIR withdrawals even against 'anti-national', laughs at demands of Punjab Education Minister's resignation after paper leaks, faces backlash
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned following a month-long "student" protest led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Union Minister Pralhad Joshi took additional charge of the education department.
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On Sunday, July 26, a video of the media debate made rounds on social media in which Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) spokesperson Sourav Das could be seen allegedly admitting to raising a selective voice for the 'paper leak' issue. In an exclusive media debate by News 18 India, Das stated that those who have a problem with paper leaks in states like Punjab and Karnataka must raise their own voices and that the CJP's protest was now concluded.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned following a month-long 'student' protest led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Union Minister Pralhad Joshi took additional charge of the education department. Following this, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal called the resignation a "big win for democracy" while Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said Gen Z made a "stubborn government" bow.
Addressing an event to honour 882 government school students who passed the NEET-UG re-exam, including Ludhiana-based topper Aryan Gupta, Mann confirmed cheating at two places but said all accused were jailed.
The Centre had brought out a new law in 2024 as well when it was faced with raging paper leak controversies. Nearly four months after President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, the Bill was notified in June 2024 when tempers were high due to alleged NEET and NET paper leaks. Before this legislation, there was no specific substantive law to deal with unfair means adopted or offences committed by various entities involved in the conduct of public examinations by the central government and its agencies. The Act aims to prevent unfair means in the public examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), the Staff Selection Commission (SSC), the railways, banking recruitment examinations and the National Testing Agency (NTA), among others.
The earlier Bill had provisions for a minimum of three to five years of imprisonment to curb cheating and those involved in organised crimes of cheating will face five to 10 years of imprisonment and a minimum fine of Rs 1 crore.
In the media debate, Das was questioned by journalist Aman Chopra and panelist Anand Ranganathan about why the CJP's protest was restricted to the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. The CJP should also demand the resignation of Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains for the paper leaks that have happened in Punjab.
"Will you demand the resignation of the Punjab Education Minister?" Ranganathan asked. Responding to this, Das smiled and said, "Hehe Anandji, why don't you raise this issue? You too have a huge following, na. Ha Ha Ha." Chopra then meddled and called out Das, saying that the latter was being selective.
🚨 ANAND : "Will you demand resignation of Punjab Education Minister?"
— News Algebra (@NewsAlgebraIND) July 26, 2026
SOURAV DAS : "Hehe Anandji Why don't you raise this issue. You have huge followings na. Ha Ha Ha" 😳
ANCHOR : Sourav, you can't be selective 🔥 pic.twitter.com/ONfeV4kmrW
In the interview further, Das stated that all their demands, of which resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan was non-negotiable, had been agreed upon by the government. He also added that all the FIRs filed against students would be withdrawn by the government.
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Chopra then asked about the anti-national elements hijacking the protest. "Whether FIRs on these will also be withdrawn? Has the government agreed to this?" Chopra asked. To this, Das said, "All the FIRs registered against the protesters will be withdrawn. JP Nadda has promised us that all the FIRs not only in Delhi but across India, filed by the BJP-ruled governments, will be withdrawn. And we'll receive this written guarantee on Tuesday, July 28, from the government." (Time stamp 2.57)
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned following a month-long 'student' protest led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Union Minister Pralhad Joshi took additional charge of the education department. Following this, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal called the resignation a "big win for democracy" while Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said Gen Z made a "stubborn government" bow.
However, the BJP slammed the AAP leaders and demanded accountability from the Punjab Education Minister for the paper leaks there. "Dharmendra Pradhan has already resigned. He demonstrated the highest standards of accountability and morality," BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said on Sunday.
ALSO READ: 10 years jail, 10 crores of fine: Cabinet clears draft Bill for stricter anti-paper leak law; to be tabled in Parliament next week
"Manish Sisodia and Arvind Kejriwal, who had said that if there was a paper leak at their end, they would resign, today 6 to 7 paper leaks have occurred in Punjab," Poonawalla said, calling Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains "shameless". Interestingly, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann denied the claims, asserting that not a single competitive exam paper has leaked during the four-and-a-half years of AAP rule in the state.
#WATCH | Delhi: BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla says, "... Dharmendra Pradhan has already resigned. He demonstrated the highest standards of accountability and morality, but Manish Sisodia and Arvind Kejriwal, who had said that if there was a paper leak at their end,… pic.twitter.com/tqh5MgfD5P
— ANI (@ANI) July 26, 2026
Addressing an event to honour 882 government school students who passed the NEET-UG re-exam, including Ludhiana-based topper Aryan Gupta, Mann confirmed cheating at two places but said all accused were jailed.
"They were scanning the papers digitally with a Bluetooth pen and sending them out. They were getting the answers they wanted from outside. Ten minutes after the paper started, the students inside who were cheating were also caught, and those who were getting the papers done from outside, who were charging Rs 3-5 lakhs for a paper, were also caught and put in jail," Mann told ANI.
#WATCH | Mohali: Punjab CM Bhagwant Singh Mann says, "It has been 4.5 years since the government was formed. Not a single paper has leaked in Punjab. We had received reports of cheating from two places. They were scanning the papers digitally with a Bluetooth pen and sending them… pic.twitter.com/neCI3O9hCA
— ANI (@ANI) July 26, 2026
It is important to note that the Union Cabinet on Friday, July 24, approved a draft bill to ensure stricter punishments for paper leaks, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an announcement.
The Centre had brought out a new law in 2024 as well when it was faced with raging paper leak controversies. Nearly four months after President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, the Bill was notified in June 2024 when tempers were high due to alleged NEET and NET paper leaks. Before this legislation, there was no specific substantive law to deal with unfair means adopted or offences committed by various entities involved in the conduct of public examinations by the central government and its agencies. The Act aims to prevent unfair means in the public examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), the Staff Selection Commission (SSC), the railways, banking recruitment examinations and the National Testing Agency (NTA), among others.
The earlier Bill had provisions for a minimum of three to five years of imprisonment to curb cheating and those involved in organised crimes of cheating will face five to 10 years of imprisonment and a minimum fine of Rs 1 crore.