5 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jul 31, 2026 06:38 PM IST
BJP MP Raghav Chadha on Thursday broke his silence on the nationwide protests over paper leaks, saying he had promised himself that he would speak on the issue only when the problem was being fixed. Chadha, who left AAP and joined the BJP three months back, said his role in the Rajya Sabha had changed.
Incidentally, Chadha, former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s protege, had sought a tougher anti-defection law after entering the Upper House in 2022. And in April this year, he and six other AAP MPs merged with the BJP after a dramatic fallout with the AAP leadership.
“My well-wishers had been asking me when I would speak on the NEET issue. I want to tell them humbly that when I was in the Opposition, questions were my weapon. Now I sit on the treasury benches, so (finding) a solution is my responsibility. Even I could have come before the camera and given a sound bite daily, but I want an outcome, not a headline,” he told the Upper House during the debate on the Centre’s legislation to make the law against paper leaks more stringent.
The 37-year-old politician, seen as a youth icon, has seen a decline in his social media following since he joined the BJP. Over the past several weeks, many on social media questioned Chadha’s silence on the nationwide protests.
“When I was in the Opposition, my job was to raise issues and ask questions. The House and you (Chair) know I did that job with full honesty. Today, my role is not to mark attendance in front of the camera, but to fix this system. So I made a promise to myself that I would speak on this issue in Parliament on the day we bring the solution to this problem. Today is that historic day when the system is getting fixed,” he said.
Earlier in his speech, Chadha said the NDA government had brought systemic changes to address the students’ complaints. “Their voices matter, their voices were heard and systemic changes have been brought in. Their voices have not been treated as a political challenge but as a concern expressed by the young in the family,” he said.
Chadha targets AAP, Congress
The BJP MP said paper leaks had taken place in the country earlier, but only discussions followed. “Today action is happening.” He said paper leaks cannot be tied to one particular political party. “This is a pan-India organised crime, a chronic disease.”
Chadha then flagged alleged irregularities in the recruitment exam for pharmacy officers in Punjab, now ruled by his former party, AAP. He also referred to paper leak incidents under Congress governments. “Political memory can be selective, public record can’t be. If a national exam’s paper leak is a national crisis, how can a paper leak in an Opposition-ruled state be a local incident? There is no difference between students,” he said.
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He said students’ protests should not become a political party’s rally. “The fight of students is to secure the exams, but political leaders are looking to increase their social media reach. When political leaders push students across the barricades and stay on the safe side during protests, they must be asked what kind of partnership is this? risk mera, reel tumhari. A students’ movement is for their future, not for the comeback of a flop political party,” he said.
The Bill to amend the anti-paper leak law cleared the Parliament on Thursday. The Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, was passed in Rajya Sabha with a voice vote amid a walkout by several Opposition parties.
On Friday, Chadha shared a clip of his speech in the House with the caption “Cancer is not cured by Crocin. Paper Leak is not cured by soundbites.”
“It needed a real institutional fix, and today we gave it one. That is why I stood in support of the Public Examination Amendment Bill 2026. Because this is India’s first real, institutional answer to paper leaks. To every NEET student watching this: your anger is justified, your pain is real, your complaint against the system is genuine. When you voiced your concerns, the Hon’ble Prime Minister heard it, not just as a PM but as Guardian. Just as the head of a family listens” he stated.
