Ananya Lohia , New Delhi - The Centre on Friday held another round of talks with the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) as protests over the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak continued, with Union ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh meeting CJP leaders in New Delhi.

After the meeting, CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka said the government had sought time until Saturday afternoon to respond to the party's demand for Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation. He also claimed the Centre had agreed "in principle" to compensate families of NEET aspirants who died by suicide and to avoid legal action against students who participated in peaceful protests.

Ranka maintained that Pradhan's resignation remained a "non-negotiable" demand, while CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke alleged that police could detain protesters ahead of the weekend demonstrations.

With the Centre expected to respond to the resignation demand on Saturday, the NEET paper leak controversy remains at the centre of a growing political and student movement.