CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI ■ ■ Union MoS Jitendra Singh, Minister J P Nadd and CJP spokespersons Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka after the third round of talks held on Saturday | PTI NAGAPATTINAM l sunday l july 26, 2026 l `12.00 l PAGES 24 l CITY EDITION Mantri Pradhan out in Gen Z debut Pralhad Joshi gets addl charge of edu ministry r a j e s h k u m a r t h a k u r @ New Delhi WITH THIS ISSUE Southern Storm PLUS 12 P AGES Express Re a d BJP heavyweight Dharmendra Pradhan, who held on as Union education minister for 1,845 days, was brought down in the end not by an election or a scandal probe, but by a satire party named after a cockroach, coupled with a paper leak he couldn’t wriggle away . The education minister resigned on Saturday citing moral responsibility, after over a month of nationwide protests spearheaded by the CJP and triggered by the alleged NEET-UG paper leak and examination irregularities. In an open letter addressed to the youth, Pradhan said he was stepping down to protect the aspirations of India’s young people and prevent anti-national forces from exploiting the situation. “India’s Yuva-Shakti is the real power of the country he said in his two-page ,” resignation letter made public on X. He said the developments of the past 10 days had “saddened” him deeply and that the issue was “not a matter of personal prestige”. Noting that he did not want “anti-national forces” to exploit the situation, Pradhan said he wanted students to devote their time to studies and building their careers. Until late Friday evening, the government appeared to be in denial over his resignation. However, developments leading to his departure followed a reported meeting between home minister Amit Shah and PM Narendra Modi. With the agitation gathering momentum and spreading across the country the gov, ernment reportedly decided there was no option than to seek his resignation. According to sources, Pradhan submitted his resignation to the PM on Saturday morning, on his own and shared it on social media in the afternoon. No action will be taken against the organisers and protesters. Govt assured families of students who lost their lives of the highest possible compensation J P Nadda CJP head Abhijeet Dipke celebrates, and so do people across the nation including in Chennai | PTI/Martin Louis Protest over after 36 days Stringent penalty for crime syndicates The Public Exam (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill says individuals involved in paper leaks will get jail terms between 5-10 years, and `50 lakh fine. For organised crime, it proposes 7 years in jail and a fine of up to `10 cr i f r a h m u f t i @ New Delhi AFTER 36 days of continuous protest at Jantar Mantar, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Saturday called off its protest “with immediate effect” and asked supporters at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar to return home. The announcement came in a joint Centre-CJP press conference in the evening, following the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as Union education minister. His resignation was the CJP’s central demand over the NEET paper leak. CJP chief spokesperson Saurav Das said the agitation was being withdrawn in ‘good faith and understanding that the agreed upon terms will be executed within the agreed upon timelines’. With one demand already met, the group’s spokespersons said the government assured them that police cases filed against student-protesters would be withdrawn, and maximum compensation would be given to families of students who died by suicide over the NEET-UG paper leak. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke’s first reaction after the resignation was, “Jhukti hai duniya, jhukane wala chahiye (The world bends; we need someone to bend it).” Pradhan’s resignation is a huge step towards reshaping our education system. Well done to students. Proud of all of you Rahul Gandhi, LoP This resignation is evidence that if you don’t get scared, don’t bend before this government, you can get their resignation Abhijeet Dipke, CJP A victory of democracy, direct democracy from the streets ... congratulations CJP, Gen Z and thank you all citizens for shedding fear Sonam Wangchuk Union Minister Pralhad Joshi has been appointed as Education Minister following Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation from the post on Saturday. Joshi has been given additional charge of the Education Ministry besides his role as Consumer Affairs Minister | P7 RAF chief raps use of excessive force E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ New Delhi The chief of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) has pulled up field commanders and personnel of the force over the alleged use of excessive force against protesters during the “Sansad Chalo” march on July 20. During the virtual review meeting held on Wednesday, amid mounting criticism of the force’s handling of the Jantar Mantar protest and allegations that excessive force was used, the RAF’s top leadership told officers and personnel that the force used during the July 20 march did not conform to the RAF’s prescribed crowd-control protocols and stressed that force must always be applied in a graded and proportionate manner. They were also directed that the Projectile Attack Gun (PAG), Anti-Riot Gun (ARG), electric shock weapons and electric shields will not be used or issued to the forces deployed in the national capital until further orders. According to sources, all personnel were instructed to strictly follow the “Use of Force” norms after assessing the nature of the crowd. Ramadoss retires from politics, says Anbumani will lead PMK from now on Stalin and EPS warn CM Vijay against Cauvery talks with Karnataka CM Villupuram: PMK founder Dr S Ramadoss on Saturday announced his retirement from politics during his 88th birthday celebrations at Saraswathi College near Tindivanam, saying he would no longer speak on or interfere in political matters. Ramadoss, who found the PMK in the year 1989, stated that his son Anbumani Ramadoss would henceforth lead the party as its president | P4 Chennai: DMK president M K Stalin and AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami on Saturday opposed CM C Joseph Vijay’s proposed talks with Karnataka CM D K Shivakumar on Cauvery dispute, arguing that negotiations would weaken TN’s legally secured rights. Stalin warned that fresh talks would undermine decades of efforts, while EPS urged Vijay to convene an all-party meeting on the Cauvery issue | P4