'Students deserve answers, not batons': Arunachal student body backs NEET protesters, warns of statewide stir

The All Arunachal Pradesh Students' Union (AAPSU) has extended its support to students protesting at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination, while strongly condemning the police lathi charge during the July 20 'Chalo Sansad' march that left several protesters injured.

The union said the ongoing hunger strike by Sonam Wangchuk, who is currently undergoing treatment at Medanta Hospital, along with the sustained protest led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), reflects the frustration of lakhs of students and families whose futures have been jeopardised by what it described as a compromised examination process.

AAPSU maintained that such concerns should be addressed through accountability and dialogue rather than "batons and detentions".

"A student demanding a fair examination system is not an enemy of the state," AAPSU president Meje Taku said, adding that when such demands are met with "lathis and tear gas", it is "the system that was supposed to protect them" that is failing.

Referring to past student movements, Taku said, "We have seen what happens when the voices of the youth are ignored for too long." He added that Arunachal Pradesh "knows this history well" and would not remain silent while students elsewhere were allegedly assaulted for raising legitimate concerns.

The students' body said Wangchuk's demands were "modest and reasonable", including accountability for the alleged NEET paper leak, an assurance that the issue would be raised in Parliament, and a guarantee that no student or protester would face retaliatory legal action. It also said the CJP's demand for ministerial accountability deserved a direct response from the Centre instead of continued silence.

"A hunger strike from a hospital bed is not a threat to the nation, it is a mirror held up to it," Taku said, urging the government to "respond with dialogue, not silence".

AAPSU further warned that prolonged inaction could intensify public discontent, arguing that a protest centred on one examination could develop into a wider nationwide movement if the government continued to rely on force rather than engagement.

The union said it has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging immediate talks with the protesting students and Wangchuk. It cautioned that if the Centre failed to act promptly, it would be compelled to organise statewide protests across Arunachal Pradesh in solidarity with the demonstrators at Jantar Mantar.

"Let this be clear: if the government does not pay heed in time, this will not remain confined to Delhi. It will spill over," Taku said, adding that Arunachal Pradesh would "make its voice heard on the streets as well" if dialogue did not begin soon.

Appealing for an urgent response, AAPSU said the students of the country "deserve answers, not batons".