Bihar man claims he was included in NEET protest despite being in Russia for 4 months

Bihar resident Kishanganj claimed he was confused after he found his name included in a case linked to the nationwide Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protests held across the country to demand education reforms. In the alleged video, Mohammad Sadaqat claimed to have been in Russia for the “last four months”.

“On July 24 (July), there was a protest against NEET leakage at LRP Chowk and the Bahadurganj administration named me in it. I was in Russia for the last four months,” Sadaqat, a resident of Ward 12 in the city, says in the video.

“As I am in Russia, I request the administration to remove my name from there. I will remain indebted to the administration for this,” adds news agency PTI.

Although the video was widely circulated on social media, PTI said it was unable to independently verify its authenticity. Livemint was also unable to verify the clip.

What did the police say?

When contacted by PTI, Kishanganj Superintendent of Police Hari Mohan Shukla neither confirmed nor denied whether a person matching the claims made in the viral video had been booked. Responding to a specific query regarding the alleged video, Sadaqata said, “Anyone who has any complaints related to the protests can approach the police for redressal.

Official X of the Bihar Police had earlier reacted to the viral video and said that the matter would be investigated. However, the post is no longer visible and appears to have been deleted.

Bihar government withdraws cases of protesting students

Meanwhile, the BJP-led Bihar government under Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary has announced that it will withdraw all cases filed against the students who took part in the protests. The decision came after the CJP, who launched the demonstrations from Delhi that eventually led to the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as Union Education Minister, along with the Congress-led opposition and student organizations such as AISA, demanded the withdrawal of the cases.

According to a notification issued by the home ministry, the government has decided to withdraw “all FIRs, complaints and show-cause notices issued in connection with the incidents that occurred before 6:00 am on July 26”. The notice also said that all those arrested in connection with these cases would be released immediately.

A total of 694 people, nearly half of them minors, were detained for allegedly trying to enforce a nationwide bandh called last week to protest the alleged paper leak.