Countering DMK president M.K. Stalin’s contention that the erstwhile DMK regime had not allowed the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) in Tamil Nadu, AIADMK coordinator O. Panneerselvam on Saturday reiterated that the gazette notification about NEET was issued on December 27, 2010, when DMK’s S. Gandhiselvan was the Union Minister of State for Health.
In a statement, Mr. Panneerselvam said a notification that medical admissions would be held based on NEET from 2013-14, was issued on April 26, 2012 when the DMK was supporting the Central government. “So, who is primarily responsible for NEET? No one can dispute that it was the DMK and the Congress government at the Centre,” he charged.
Maintaining that the AIADMK has never supported entrance exams or NEET, Mr. Panneerselvam claimed that the DMK which [as part of the Central government] issued the gazette about NEET in 2010, lost in the Assembly elections in April 2011. “DMK and the Congress are responsible for NEET. After signing the notification, the DMK is now shedding crocodile tears,” charged the AIADMK leader.
Questioning whether Mr. Stalin spoke about the issue in 2011 or was he aware of the developments, Mr. Panneerselvam asked: “Why did the DMK not walk out of the Congress government at the Centre, which introduced the NEET? If the DMK opposed NEET through a letter as claimed by the DMK president, why did it not withdraw its support to the Centre until 2013?”
Mr. Panneerselvam recalled that it was during the erstwhile AIADMK regime under then Chief Minister Jayalalithaa that the Tamil Nadu Regulation of Admission in Professional Courses Act, 2006 was enacted in January that year. The former CM went on charge that the DMK undertook a “few activities” attempting not to let the AIADMK and its leader claim credit for the Act.
“I condemn the false campaign by the DMK president, on behalf of the AIADMK for having betrayed the poor, downtrodden, rural, ST, SC, MBC, BC students studying in government schools,” Mr. Panneerselvam said.
