Dharmendra Pradhan of India and Yvette Berry of Australia Resign: The Reasons Behind Their 48-Hour Resignations
Two education ministers from two democracies quit within 48 hours. Though the resignations occurred at similar times, the reasons behind them were rather different.
On July 25, 2026, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan of India resigned over weeks of countrywide student demonstrations and growing political pressure over the NEET-UG paper leak incident. Yvette Berry, the Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of Education for the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), resigned two days earlier on July 23, 2026, even though an official integrity probe revealed no personal misconduct on her part.
Dharmendra Pradhan resigned; why?
Following weeks of demonstrations over purported irregularities in the NEET-UG exam, Dharmendra Pradhan resigned as India’s Union Education Minister on July 25, 2026.
The protests, which were organised by students and supported by a number of opposition groups, requested measures to stop future paper leaks and accountability for the examination process.
Pradhan stated in his letter of resignation that he had made the decision to leave for the benefit of the pupils. According to him, the action was taken to ensure that students could concentrate on their studies rather than the ongoing legal and political developments surrounding the controversy.
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi was appointed head of the Ministry of Education after the President of India accepted his resignation.
What caused Yvette Berry to resign?
Yvette Berry left her position as the Australian Capital Territory’s Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of Education on 23 July 2026.
Her resignation came after the ACT Integrity Commission released a report on the Campbell Primary School reconstruction procurement process.
The panel discovered that during the contract process, the former Director-General of the ACT Education Directorate and Berry’s former chief of staff had committed grave corruption.
Nevertheless, the report found no proof that Berry had personally participated in or been aware of the misconduct, and it made no negative conclusions about her.
After the investigation was made public, Berry resigned even though he was found not guilty.
Two ministers of education in two democracies quit their positions in less than two days. Despite the fact that the departures were nearly consecutive, the circumstances surrounding them were very different.
In response to growing political pressure over the NEET-UG paper leak incident and criticism of the government’s handling of protests, which protesters called violent, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned on Saturday, July 25.
Yvette Berry, the Australian Capital Territory’s (ACT) Deputy Chief Minister and Education Minister, also resigned earlier that week on Thursday, 23 July. However, according to ABC, her decision was made in spite of an integrity review that revealed no personal misconduct on her part.