Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Joseph Vijay on Wednesday, 22 July 2026 condemned the arrest of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and several other leaders who joined a youth protest in Delhi against alleged irregularities in the NEET examination, calling the Union Government's actions 'anti-democratic' and extending the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK)'s full support to the opposition's protest inside Parliament premises.

Context

In his post, CM Vijay stated that the arrest of Rahul Gandhi and other leaders who took to the streets in support of students agitating against NEET irregularities was 'against democracy' and that the Union Government's conduct 'deserves condemnation.' He announced that TVK extends its 'complete support' to the opposition's Parliament-premises protest being held on 22 July 2026 to register condemnation of the previous day's events.

Writing in Tamil, the Chief Minister also reiterated his party's long-standing demand: 'நீட் தேர்வு அறவே அகற்றப்பட வேண்டும்' ('NEET must be completely abolished'). He described this as TVK's 'uncompromising position' and stressed that the party would never make 'false promises' on the issue for electoral gain.

Policy Backdrop

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) has been mandatory across India following Supreme Court rulings in 2013 and 2016, which ended state-specific medical entrance examinations. Tamil Nadu has mounted sustained resistance: the state assembly passed a bill in 2021 seeking a permanent exemption, and successive governments have petitioned the Centre since 2017, arguing that NEET disadvantages students from rural areas and state-board schools.

CM Vijay outlined a two-tier solution in his post. The permanent fix, he said, is transferring education from the Concurrent List to the State List of the Constitution, giving states full authority over admissions. As an interim measure, he proposed creating a 'Special Concurrent List' that would vest state governments with complete power over education and medical education until any legal procedural hurdles in a full transfer are resolved.

He emphasised that this dual framework — permanent transfer to the State List and an interim Special Concurrent List — has been TVK's stated position since the party's founding, having been articulated at an education awards ceremony held by the party at its inception.

Stakeholders and Impact

The post directly addresses medical aspirants, their families, and rural students who TVK argues bear a disproportionate burden under the centralised exam system. CM Vijay wrote that NEET 'severely affects not just students but also their families,' and that the Union Government 'must respect the sentiments of our people and students.'

The statement also carries political weight for the broader INDIA bloc opposition, as TVK signals solidarity with the parliamentary protest led by Rahul Gandhi's Congress and allied parties. The dual demand — condemning the arrests and abolishing NEET — links a civil-liberties grievance to an entrenched federal autonomy argument.

What's Next

Attention will now shift to proceedings in the Parliament session, where the opposition protest inside the premises is expected to raise the NEET issue on the floor. Any fresh petitions before the Supreme Court seeking interim relief from NEET for 2026-27 medical admissions in Tamil Nadu will be closely watched. CM Vijay's explicit call for a Special Concurrent List mechanism could also prompt formal legislative proposals or inter-state consultations among states seeking greater autonomy over education policy.