New Delhi: A day after opposition parties slammed the Centre’s choice to hold NEET and JEE in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, a call that has seen students the nation over quite agitated, the Congress has chosen to hold cross country challenges the government’s move in solidarity with the candidates who have expressed worry over absence of transportation and unavoidable swarming if exams are not delayed.

The political move comes after a gathering led by Congress interim chief Sonia Gandhi, which saw chief minister of Maharashtra, West Bengal and Punjab among others in participation, encouraged states to move toward the Supreme Court against conducting tests during a pandemic.

Supporting the interest for deferment of NEET and JEE examination considering the coronavirus pandemic, seven chief minister of non-BJP governed states on Wednesday chose to mutually move the Supreme Court on the issue.

Gatherings like the DMK and AAP also joined the developing tune against the holding of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) when COVID-19 cases were rising the nation over. Batting for the students who are requesting deferment of the exams due to COVID-19, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi asked the centre government to tune in to their complaints and find an amicable solution.

He said on Twitter “NEET-JEE aspirants are stressed over their health and future. They have veritable worries of: dread of COVID-19 contamination, transport and housing during pandemic and flood-pandemonium in Assam and Bihar,”.

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia separately said medical and engineering entrance exams NEET and JEE ought to be deferred and the central government should take a shot at elective strategies for choosing students. “They (Centre) are stating conventions will be followed. Following similar conventions that the Centre needs 28 lakh students to follow, lakhs of Indians have tested positive,” the Aam Aadmi Party told journalists, Sisodia asked. 

The Joint Entrance Examination (Main) and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET-UG) will be conducted in September as booked, the Ministry of Education authorities had said on Tuesday. The Supreme Court had a week ago excused a request looking for delay of the two tests, saying a “valuable” academic year of student “can’t be squandered” and life needs to go on. While an aggregate of 9.53 lakh competitors have enlisted for JEE-Mains, 15.97 lakh students have enrolled for NEET. The NEET is to be hung on September 13 and engineering entrance test JEE Main is scheduled from September 1-6.