K’taka legislature passes resolution against NEET, ‘One Nation, One Election’ amid stiff opposition

Bengaluru, July 25 (IANS) The Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Thursday passed resolutions against the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and ‘One Nation, One Election’, amid stiff opposition by BJP and JD(S) legislators.Minister for Law, HK Patil proposed the resolutions in the House, following which Speaker UT Khader sought a voice vote in the House amid din.Speaker Khader later declared that the resolutions were passed with majority vote.Proposing the resolution against ‘One Nation, One Election’, Patil stated that India was the biggest democracy in the world and the proposal in this regard by the Centre was against the principles of the Constitution.The law minister added that holding transparent and judicious elections was the soul of democracy.“The ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal is dangerous for the federal system. Different states have their own frameworks regarding state Assemblies. The proposal for one election for the whole nation will focus more on the national level and less on states,” Patil stated.“Therefore, it is urged that the central government should not proceed with the ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal. The matter will also be brought to the notice of the Election Commission,” he stated.Leader of the Opposition, R Ashoka maintained that former President Pranab Mukherjee, who was a senior Congress leader, had maintained that by conducting elections throughout the country at once, wastage of money could be prevented and the development of the nation is hampered by the present model of conducting elections.Ashoka stated that the Congress government must ensure transparency with regards to the irregularities in MUDA and save democracy by allowing a debate in the House over it.BJP legislators raised slogans while the resolutions were passed amid din.A resolution opposing the proposal of delimitation of the Assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies was also passed.Minister for Medical Education, Sharan Prakash Patil, talking to reporters said that the state government has passed the resolution against NEET.”We have passed the resolution and unanimously urged the Government of India to withdraw NEET exams and allow state governments to conduct their own entrance exams.”What we are doing is for the future and it won’t have any impact in the current year. There is an Act of Parliament in place and the NEET exam is backed by a Supreme Court judgment. So if it needs to be changed, there has to be amendment to the Act,” Patil stated.“The Government of India has failed to conduct entrance exams with integrity. They have cancelled various examinations. The country has lost confidence that the Government of India is competent enough to conduct entrance exams for professional courses.”So, we have asked for the entrance exams to be conducted by the state governments,” Patil maintained.–IANSmka/rad