The Congress-affiliated National Students' Union of India (NSUI) and the Youth Congress have intensified their campaign against the Maharashtra government, demanding the resignation of School Education Minister Dada Bhuse over a series of alleged failures in the state's education system.
Addressing a press conference at Tilak Bhavan in Dadar on Monday, July 27, NSUI State President Sagar Salunkhe and Mumbai Youth Congress President Zeenat Shabreen accused the minister of failing to address major issues affecting students, including examination paper leaks, the closure of Marathi-medium schools, irregularities in the education department, and the deteriorating condition of government schools.
The organisations have given Bhuse a seven-day ultimatum to resign, warning that they will launch a protest march to his residence if he fails to step down.
NSUI said it interacted with lakhs of students, parents, and young people across Maharashtra to prepare a special "report card" evaluating the education minister's performance.
The report highlights several concerns, including the alleged Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) paper leak, the school ID scam, the closure of Marathi-medium schools, and poor infrastructure in government schools. The student body argued that Bhuse should accept moral responsibility for these issues and resign, drawing comparisons with the resignation of former Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan following the NEET paper leak controversy.
The Maharashtra Congress also backed the demand for Bhuse's resignation, alleging that the state government has failed to protect the integrity of the education system.
Salunkhe claimed that the BJP-led Mahayuti government has transformed education from a public service into a profit-driven sector. He also criticised the practice of assigning teachers Booth Level Officer (BLO) duties, saying it disrupts classroom teaching and places excessive pressure on educators.
According to Salunkhe, the additional workload has adversely affected teachers' mental well-being. He referred to the death of a Mumbai teacher, alleging that work-related stress contributed to the tragedy.
The NSUI leader further alleged administrative mismanagement across the School Education, Higher and Technical Education, and Medical Education departments.
He claimed that tribal students in Nandurbar district are being exploited through financial irregularities and alleged that fake nursing colleges continue to operate across the state.
Salunkhe also accused higher education institutions of imposing excessive fees on students. Citing an example, he alleged that students at CEOP College in Pune are charged ₹81,000 as a development fee, ₹22,000 as a laboratory fee, and ₹17,000 as tuition fees. He held Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil responsible for allowing such practices and alleged that commercialisation has overtaken the state's education sector.
Meanwhile, the Mumbai unit of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has also announced a seven-day protest at Azad Maidan beginning July 27, subject to police permission, over the alleged Maharashtra TET paper leak.
The organisation reiterated its demand for Dada Bhuse's resignation and called for transparent action against officials in the state education department. CJP leaders said the state should take decisive action similar to the Centre's response to the controversy involving the National Testing Agency (NTA).
"Our primary demand remains the resignation of Education Minister Dada Bhuse. We also want transparent action against officials responsible for the alleged irregularities in the education department," said Pranay Ahire, a member of the Mumbai CJP core committee.
Another core committee member, Mayur Shirke, said the group had earlier raised concerns regarding the TET paper leak during a meeting with Minister Girish Mahajan but had not received any response.
In addition to seeking justice in the TET paper leak case, the CJP has demanded the withdrawal of 13 FIRs and detention notices issued against protesters who participated in earlier demonstrations.
If granted police permission, the protest will be held at Azad Maidan, with organisers stating that all demonstrations will remain peaceful and lawful.
Key Demands