On September 1, when 17-year-old medical aspirant Anitha killed herself, she would not have thought that that her death would instigate the simmering public anger against a non-existent government. Anitha, who had filed a petition against the National Eligibility and Entrance Test in the Supreme Court, could not achieve her medical dreams because of the entrance exam.
Tamil Nadu has witnessed widespread protests across the state and among different sections over her suicide. Several hundreds of protesters hit the streets to stage rallies, blocked roads on Saturday blaming both the Centre and the state government for the death of Anitha.
Anitha is believed to have committed suicide, a few months after the Supreme Court dismissed her petition. She had prayed for an exemption from NEET saying it was detrimental to the interests of students like her from rural areas. Anitha had scored 1176 out of 1200.
Shouting slogans like Vekka kedu Vekka Kedu (shame, shame), the protesters held the BJP and the AIADMK responsible for wrecking the dreams of hundreds of rural students like Anitha. In Chennai, several protesting students were detained and later let off. The CPI and the CPI(M), too, staged protests in the state.
At Anitha’s Ariyalur, the simmering anger did not settle till late in the evening, even when her protesting family which first refused to take back her body finally relented. And then there was a beeline of political leaders visiting Anitha’s house to pay last respects to her.
Late in the evening opposition leader M.K. Stalin, as he landed in Chennai from Mumbai, proceeded straight to Ariyalur. “Anitha’s suicide is the collective failure of the Centre and the state government. Both promised exemption from NEET and did not heed to it. Four ministers including Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palanisamy and Health minister C. Vijayabhaskar should step down holding responsibility for the death of Anitha,” he said. DMK has called for an all party meeting on September 4 in Chennai to decide on the next course of action and protests.
The simmering anger has now turned into protests across the state, like how it began for the Jallikattu protests in January this year. “We are talking about the Jallikattu protests and calling it a success. But I want everyone to draw inference from the anti-Hindi agitation. It was a student protest that set the tone and only after that the political parties took it forward which led to a change in government,” recalls a senior journalist.
In fact in her 2016 election manifesto and during the campaign, Jayalalithaa had strongly opposed NEET saying it would affect the rural students. “NEET will affect the medical aspirants from villages and other rural areas. I assure you that NEET will not be implemented in Tamil Nadu and the state government will take necessary steps to bring an ordinance,” she had said while campaigning at Palayamkottai near Tirunelveli.
“Yet another dalit student being killed because of the failure of the system and because of the policies of the Modi government. This time they have taken umbrage behind the Supreme Court. It is the colossal failure of the judiciary and the political parties in power,” says S. Rajeshwari, a medical aspirant from Trichy who lost because she could not score in NEET.
“If not MBBS, I thought at least dental would be possible. But I have lost all hopes. Anitha’s suicide is making me tremble like a worm. I am very agitated at mind,” she adds. In fact, Rajeshwari’s mother Mahalakshmi has been with her 24X7 after she lost in NEET. “It's okay if she is not a doctor. She is very much disturbed after the counselling. But we have been telling her that there are other options to study,” tells Mahalakshmi. But like Anitha and Rajeshwari, the NEET, says Mahalakshmi, had thrashed the dreams of many students. “We voted for Modi and for AIADMK believing we will have rulers who will be for us. But they have cheated us,” she tells.
The NEET, according to the protesters in Tamil Nadu, is being forced in the name of a better system. NEET is not systemic change. It is one more complication and not a solution not a step towards rationalising our education, say the students. “Though we need to rationalise education, we need doctors who suit our rural system. Research and developments have to be more specific. NEET is not a step towards that goal,” tells Krishna Priya Narayanan, a teacher in a private school in Chennai.
“NEET and Anita’s death is the first failure of the political system. All the promises were given by our ruling parties. But they weren’t loyal to it. They weren’t loyal even to the family or the caste whose vote they got during the elections. Power politics is playing big here and so they will not do anything for the government,” says R. Sindhan, CPI(M) comrade.
Not even an AIADMK minister has visited Anitha’s house, fearing agitation. Chief Minister Palanisamy has announced a solatium of Rs 7 lakhs and a government job for anyone eligible in her family. Minister Harshavardhan Singh who was supposed to visit Coimbatore for a public event had reportedly cancelled his visit following widespread agitations. The BJP ministers and leaders in the state, too, have stayed away from Ariyalur and other southern districts fearing protest.
