ThePrint has once again demonstrated how sensationalism often trumps journalism by reducing one of India’s most accomplished computer scientists to a caricature in a headline seemingly designed to ridicule rather than inform.
Its headline reads, “Kamakoti is not the typical IIT grad. No passport, failed JEE, he is now set to reform the NTA.”
The implication is obvious. Instead of introducing readers to the IIT Madras Director as an internationally respected computer scientist, architect of India’s indigenous processor programme, Padma Shri awardee and cybersecurity expert, ThePrint chooses to define him by two entirely irrelevant facts, that he does not possess a passport and that he once did not qualify in the JEE.
The headline does not merely seek clicks. It frames Prof. V Kamakoti as someone who is somehow less qualified, less deserving, or an odd choice to reform India’s examination system.
Yet the article itself does not support that framing.
A Headline That Trivialises A Lifetime Of Achievement
Having a passport is not an academic qualification. Not clearing the JEE decades ago is not a measure of scientific competence.
Neither has any bearing on whether someone is capable of leading IIT Madras or helping reform India’s examination ecosystem.
Yet these are the two facts ThePrint considered most worthy of placing before millions of readers.
Not his PhD. Not his research. Not his contributions to indigenous semiconductor technology. Not his decades at IIT Madras. Not his national policy work.
Instead, they choose to highlight, “No passport.” “Failed JEE.”
It is difficult to imagine a more dishonest way of introducing one of India’s foremost computer scientists.
The Credentials ThePrint Chose To Downplay
Prof. Kamakoti holds a B.E. in Computer Science and Engineering, an M.S. by Research from IIT Madras, and a Ph.D. from IIT Madras.
He completed post-doctoral research at both the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and the Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc).
His research spans computer architecture, VLSI design, high-performance computing and cybersecurity.
He led the SHAKTI project, which produced India’s first indigenous open-source processor family – a landmark achievement in India’s push for technological self-reliance.
He serves on the National Security Advisory Board, has chaired the government’s Artificial Intelligence Task Force, advises the government on critical technology, and was recently appointed to the committee tasked with reforming the National Testing Agency.
In 2026, he was awarded the Padma Shri for his contributions to science and engineering.
These are the reasons he occupies positions of national importance.
None of them made the headline.
The Story Doesn’t Match The Headline
Ironically, even ThePrint’s own article barely discusses the headline’s central claims.
Most of the report focuses on the NTA reforms, the NEET paper leak, Kamakoti’s views on examination security, and the political controversy surrounding his appointment.
The “failed JEE” and “no passport” hooks, the very foundation of the headline, receive little meaningful treatment.
The result is classic clickbait: a provocative headline that creates one impression while the article delivers something else entirely.
An Attempt To Manufacture Doubt
The headline invites readers to ask a question that should never arise:
How did someone who “failed JEE” become IIT Madras Director?
The answer is simple.
Through academic excellence, decades of research, pioneering technological contributions, institutional leadership and national service.
That is how academia works.
ThePrint, however, chooses to substitute achievement with innuendo.
Instead of celebrating the fact that a person who did not clear one competitive examination went on to earn a doctorate from IIT Madras, become its Director, lead India’s indigenous processor mission and advise the Government of India on strategic technology, the publication frames that journey almost as an anomaly.
It is journalism by insinuation.
Merit Deserved Better Than Mockery
ThePrint had every opportunity to tell the remarkable story of an academic who built an extraordinary career through scholarship, research and innovation.
Instead, it chose the language of social media bait.
When a publication introduces a decorated scientist and IIT Director with “No passport, failed JEE,” it says less about the subject and far more about the standards of the portal and its editorial position itself.
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