Mayawati Slams UP, Bihar Governments Over Students' Railway Exam Protests

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Thursday slammed the Uttar Pradesh and Bihar governments, holding them responsible for prevailing poverty and unemployment in the state, a day after students staged a massive protest against the Railway exam results in Patna.

The BSP supremo pointed out the uproar that took place when the first Uttar Pradesh Teacher Eligibility Test (UPTET) was held in Uttar Pradesh and now the RRB-NTPC result in Bihar.

In a tweet in Hindi today, Mayawati said, "There has been a huge uproar in UP and Bihar during the first UPTET and now the RRB-NTPC results of the Railways. This is proof of the failures of the governments. Beating up poor youths and unemployed youths for protesting, playing with their future is totally unjustified."

"Due to the wrong policies of the government, poverty and unemployment have reached the peak. Government jobs and the facility of reservation in them have become secondary. In such a situation, it is unjust to not have the examination, even for a few government jobs for years. BJP has to change its narrow vision of selling pakoras to the youth," she tweeted.

On Wednesday, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw urged the agitating students to not protest and assured them to address their grievances and concerns. The assurance from the Railway Minister came after students alleged irregularities in the Non-Technical Popular Categories (NTPC) exams.