Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], July 25 (ANI): Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Saturday made a passionate pitch for youth empowerment, urging the Centre to immediately drop all legal cases filed against students involved in the nationwide NEET-UG protests while announcing plans to convene a special Assembly session to lower the minimum age for contesting elections to 21 years.
Addressing a gathering of youth and student leaders, Revanth Reddy framed the recent resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan as a testament to the power of sustained democratic resistance, asserting that "the fight is far from over."
Connecting the street agitation to national policy reforms, the Chief Minister urged the Union Government to ensure that young protesters are not burdened with pending FIRs following their participation in demonstrations:
"The government's decision to concede to public pressure reflects the strength of the youth movement, but the fight is far from over. Thousands of students who took part in the agitation continue to face legal cases; we demand their immediate and unconditional withdrawal."
Revanth Reddy also highlighted the tragic human toll of recurring examination irregularities, criticising the Central leadership for failing to meet with bereaved families who lost children to exam-related distress. He appealed to Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and KC Venugopal to forcefully raise demands in Parliament for state-backed financial compensation.
Moving beyond immediate relief measures, the Telangana Chief Minister announced that his government will convene a special session of the State Assembly in early August to adopt a resolution seeking a landmark constitutional reform:
"If 21-year-olds are eligible to become IAS, IPS, and IFS officers, or serve as mayors and local body representatives, why should they be barred from contesting as MLAs or MPs? India's youth must be allowed to serve directly as legislators and ministers."
Citing international frameworks in the UK, Germany, and Singapore, Revanth Reddy stated he would lobby leaders across the INDIA alliance to build a consensus on lowering the eligibility age from 25 to 21 years.
Revanth Reddy urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to consider international examples and maintained that India's youth should also be allowed to serve as legislators, ministers and policymakers.
Reaffirming his commitment to youth leadership, the Chief Minister said the Telangana Assembly would send a strong message in favour of greater political representation for young people. He added that he would discuss the issue with leaders of the INDIA bloc and other political parties to build wider consensus on the proposal.
Concluding his address, Revanth Reddy called upon young people not only to protest on the streets but also to enter public life and make their voices heard in Parliament. He said empowering the younger generation in governance was essential for shaping the country's future.
Samajwadi Party chief and Lok Sabha MP Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said that a "new era will dawn" after Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation, as leaders from across the Opposition congratulated student protesters and described the development as a victory for democracy, accountability and sustained public resistance against examination irregularities.
In a post on X, Yadav termed the resignation a "victory for morale and unity" and said the student movement had laid the foundation for wider democratic and institutional reforms.
"This is a victory for morale and unity! Heartfelt congratulations to every activist and every single person who supported them in any way on this 'Big-Win'!!! The beginning that the youth have made by winning the battle for Examinations & Education will now... No one will be able to snatch away the rights given by the Constitution. Now a new era will dawn, one that will bring change!" Yadav posted.
His remarks came after Dharmendra Pradhan resigned from the Union Cabinet, saying he had submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure that protests over examination irregularities were not exploited by "anti-national forces."
Reacting to the resignation, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi credited students across the country for sustaining the movement and said the Centre had accepted the Opposition's principal demand.
"The children protested against injustice not only in the capital of Delhi, but also in various parts of India, staged sit-ins and demonstrated. All the Congress workers who, under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, supported the students through this movement. Today, the double-engine BJP government had to accept our primary demand. The youth demonstrated the power of democracy and crushed the government's arrogance. Our first demand, that Dharmendra Pradhan should resign, was accepted," Gogoi said.
Rashtriya Loktantrik Party MP Hanuman Beniwal said Pradhan should have been removed earlier and praised students for sustaining what he described as a leaderless movement.
"He should have been dismissed. I thank the students and youth of this country because, in this leaderless movement, millions of young people were ready to face lathi charges and bullets. They endured immense pain. I would also like to thank all the political parties that went to Jantar Mantar, listened to those students, and supported them," Beniwal said.
"Overall, the students have won, and the pride of the Prime Minister and the BJP government has been shaken. Now that the resignations have started, you can understand that the process of more resignations and removals may begin, from Rajasthan to Delhi," he said.
Meanwhile, CJP chief spokesperson Saurav Das announced that the organisation was withdrawing its agitation "in good faith" after receiving assurances from the Centre that the agreed demands would be implemented within specified timelines.
According to the organisation, the government has agreed to provide suitable compensation to the families of NEET aspirants who died by suicide, withdraw FIRs registered against protesters across the country and continue discussions on broader educational reforms through a five-point charter. Another round of talks is expected to be held after four weeks.
Union Minister JP Nadda said the Centre had accepted the demands related to examination reforms and would examine the CJP's five-point charter before taking further decisions.
The CJP also paid tribute to activist Sonam Wangchuk, describing his 26-day hunger strike as the moral force behind the nationwide movement.
In a post on X, the organisation said, "Sonam Wangchuk's Gandhian satyagraha awakened an entire nation. Fasting for 26 days for the youth of this country was a pure and supreme sacrifice. It will go down in history as the moral force that united us all against impossible odds".
Speaking after the developments, Wangchuk welcomed the government's decision, describing it as "a victory for democracy," while urging students to remain peaceful and humble in victory.
"The true strength of democracy comes from our peace, not from muscle power... Now, when you feel that victory has been achieved, humility in victory is the most important thing; it defines and displays your character," Wangchuk said.
He also urged the government and society to focus on comprehensive reforms in education and governance, saying accountability should mark the beginning, not the end, of the movement.
Meanwhile, the Centre is preparing to introduce a stringent anti-paper leak law providing for Special Fast-Track Courts, a Special Task Force (STF) and other measures aimed at preventing examination malpractices across the country.

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This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.