Education Secretary replaced amid protests over exam paper leaks in India
The Indian government has replaced Education Secretary Vineet Joshi in a major bureaucratic reshuffle amid growing protests over alleged examination paper leaks, including the controversy surrounding the NEET exam.
According to an official government notification issued late Thursday, Joshi has been transferred as Secretary in the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
He has been succeeded by Naresh Pal Gangwar, who was serving as Secretary in the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying.
The reshuffle also saw TK Anil Kumar, currently Additional Secretary in the Department of Rural Development, appointed as Secretary in the Department of School Education and Literacy.
Joshi had taken charge as Secretary of the Department of Higher Education in January 2025.
The latest administrative changes were part of a wider reshuffle involving 13 appointments and four in-situ upgrades.
The move comes as protests continue over alleged examination paper leaks, with the satirical political outfit Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and opposition parties demanding greater accountability from the government.
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey linked Joshi's transfer to the government's response to the controversy, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi had acted against officials accused of negligence over the issue.
"Prime Minister Modi has replaced the Education Secretary for showing apathy regarding the paper leak issue. Strict action will be taken against those responsible for the paper leak, as well as those who displayed negligence or apathy," Dubey said.
Joshi, a 1992-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Manipur cadre, previously served as the state's Chief Secretary. He was also the founding Director General of the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts major entrance examinations, including NEET and JEE.
His previous assignments also include serving as Chairman of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Education. Joshi holds a degree in mechanical engineering from IIT Kanpur and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT).
Gangwar, who succeeds him, is a 1994-batch IAS officer of the West Bengal cadre and has been serving as Secretary in the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying before his latest appointment.
The transfer comes amid protests calling for the resignation of the education minister.
A delegation of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) will meet with government Ministers on Friday (July 24), sources said.
The meeting will take place at 12.30 pm, but its venue has not been disclosed, the Hindu reports.
Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Thursday (July 23, 2026) said that the Centre is ready for talks with the Cockroach Janta Party amid the latter’s protest in Delhi’s Jantar Mantar over paper leaks and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. However, CJP has declined the invitation and said that the talks need to happen at Jantar Mantar or at another neutral venue.