Beyond Paper Leaks: How Rahul Gandhi Is Building Congress’s Youth Campaign Around Exam Failures

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is set to address students and competitive examination aspirants in Dehradun on Friday as part of the party’s ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ campaign, a nationwide outreach effort focused on paper leaks, examination cancellations, recruitment delays and unemployment.

The campaign, led by Gandhi with the National Students’ Union of India and the Indian Youth Congress, signals Congress’s attempt to bring several youth-related grievances under a single political platform.

What Is Chhatron Ki Goonj Campaign?

The Congress launched Chhatron Ki Goonj following the alleged NEET-UG paper leak and other examination-related controversies. Gandhi addressed the first rally under the campaign in Kota on June 17, after which the party expanded the outreach to other cities, including Prayagraj, Patna and Delhi.

The Dehradun programme is the latest stage of the campaign, which the Congress says will include rallies, discussions, protests and interventions in Parliament.

Last month, Gandhi wrote to Congress general secretaries, state in-charges, and the presidents of the party’s state, district and city units, asking them to convert the initiative led by the NSUI and Indian Youth Congress into a “countrywide movement”.

“The young people of India are facing an unprecedented crisis. Paper leaks, cancelled examinations, repeated re-examinations, delays in recruitment, vacant government posts, rising unemployment, and the growing cost of education have caused deep distress to them and their families,” the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha wrote.

The letter showed that the party intends to expand the campaign beyond a series of public meetings and involve its organisation at every level.

From Examination Irregularities To A Wider Youth Agenda

The Congress is raising the recent examination failures to build a broader argument about the pressures facing students and job seekers. The party is also highlighting the uncertainty created by delayed recruitment processes and unfilled government posts.

Gandhi described the education system as placing excessive pressure on young people instead of helping them secure stable careers.

“We are all aware that it is a system that places immense pressure on young people and pushes their families into a spiral of debt, sustained stress and suffering, instead of supporting them as they choose career paths and build strong futures for themselves,” he wrote.

“We need to expose the truth of the oppression and extortion being faced by India’s youth and create momentum for a message to be carried across the country in a coordinated and effective manner,” he added.

Gandhi also urged party workers to sustain the campaign beyond the immediate controversy.

“Let us all work together to free our youth from this oppressive system and lay the foundation for a new system that provides them with the opportunity and support they deserve,” he said.

How Congress Is Linking Education With Unemployment

Unemployment has remained a recurring theme in the Congress’s criticism of the Narendra Modi government. Chhatron Ki Goonj places that issue within the everyday experiences of students and competitive examination aspirants.

The party is seeking to connect the reliability of examinations with the availability of jobs. Its argument is that students are being asked to spend heavily on education and preparation, but frequently encounter cancelled tests, delayed results, prolonged recruitment cycles and a shortage of secure employment opportunities.

By combining these concerns, the Congress is attempting to create a single youth-focused narrative around education, examinations and jobs.

The campaign also gives the party a structured platform to engage students, first-time voters and young graduates while repeatedly raising unemployment as a national political issue.

Rahul Gandhi’s Criticism Of The Government

Gandhi has used individual cases to highlight what he describes as the human cost of examination failures.

On June 4, he referred to Akanksha Chaturvedi, a NEET aspirant from Madhya Pradesh who was preparing in Nagpur and was reportedly found dead after the alleged paper leak and cancellation of the May 3 examination.

According to Gandhi, her father had taken a ₹3 lakh loan against his Kisan Credit Card and worked as a cook in Nagpur to support her preparation.

“A father did everything humanly possible. Then, the NEET paper leaked. The examination was cancelled. Amidst that uncertainty, Akanksha left us forever,” Gandhi wrote on X.

“Akanksha’s death was not a suicide, it is the tragic outcome of a corrupt and broken system under Prime Minister Modi,” he alleged.

Gandhi has also accused the Centre of targeting students who raise concerns about fair examinations and employment.

“Drowned in the arrogance of power, the Modi government has now reached a point where the Education Minister is calling students—who are merely demanding their rights, fair examinations, and a secure future—‘terrorists’,” he wrote on X.

BJP’s Response

The BJP has accused Gandhi of politicising the NEET controversy.

Party spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi alleged that the Congress leader was playing politics over the issue and had little concern for the future of lakhs of students.

Trivedi said the government remained fully alert and sensitive to concerns surrounding the NEET examination and would not allow injustice to students. He added that strict action would be taken against those responsible for any irregularities.

Through Chhatron Ki Goonj, the Congress is attempting to turn examination failures into a sustained campaign around education and employment. The Dehradun outreach is part of that wider effort to keep youth concerns at the centre of the party’s political campaign against the Modi government.