TMC govt working against interest of students: Kailash Vijayvargiya

SILIGURI: BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya on Sunday alleged that the TMC dispensation in West Bengal was "working against the interest of students" by opposing the central government's decision to hold JEE and NEET exams in September.
Claiming that the state government's move to impose total lockdown on certain days was "politically motivated", he said the shutdown should be withdrawn as it might inconvenience the students.
Vijayvargiya, while addressing a press conference in Siliguri, said several other states ruled by non-BJP parties have made adequate preparations for the smooth conduct of the all-India entrance examinations, as they would not want to compromise the future of these students.
With Covid-19 spreading unabated in the state, the West Bengal government has decided to impose complete lockdown on specific days to break the chain of virus transmission.
It has opposed the Union government's decision to hold the entrance examinations amid the pandemic, contending that students would be exposed to health hazards.
The Centre has, in its 'Unlock-4' guidelines issued on Saturday, said states and union territories cannot enforce any local lockdowns outside of Covid-19 containment zones without prior approval of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Vijayvargiya, who is also the BJP's Bengal minder, claimed that the future of students would be in jeopardy, if they fail to sit for the exams.
The senior BJP leader also accused the state government of mishandling the Covid-19 situation.
Later in the day, he chaired a meeting of senior leaders of the BJP here, which was attended by Arvind Menon, Lok Sabha MPs Sukanta Majumdar, Nisith Pramanik among others.
On Saturday, too, Vijayvargiya had claimed that 90 per cent of the applicants from West Bengal are willing to sit for the NEET and the JEE examinations, and asked the TMC government not to politicise the matter.