Congress demands Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation, seeks education reforms

The Congress accused the Centre of weakening India's education system and demanded Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation, a probe into alleged paper leak links, and comprehensive reforms. The party also announced plans to prepare an Education Charter based on nationwide student consultations

New Delhi: The Congress on Monday accused the Modi government of putting India’s education system into the “ICU” and pressed for its demands that Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan should resign, a probe be conducted into his alleged connections with the paper leak mafia and a comprehensive reform of the system.

Party leader and NSUI in-charge Kanhaiya Kumar said Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, is meeting students across the country and listening to their concerns, so that the education system can be overhauled.

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“With the same objective, Rahul Gandhi Ji had given a presentation among students and their parents in Kota. Now we are taking this campaign forward in different parts of the country. We are compiling suggestions from students, teachers, and parents,” Kumar said.

He was addressing a press conference along with NSUI president Vinod Jakhar, and party leaders Kiran Mugabasav, Nishant Mandal and K K Shastri. “In the coming days, we will create an Education Charter to change the education system and set it right,” Kumar said.

The Modi government has put India’s education system into the ICU, he alleged. Listing the party’s demands, Kumar said Pradhan should resign and an investigation should be conducted into his connections with the paper leak mafia.

“India’s education system should be reformed, for which the UPA government had formed a committee, but the NDA government arbitrarily established the NTA. “A regular job calendar should be issued for the youth and an academic calendar should be released for examination recruitment processes,” Kumar demanded.

In his remarks at the presser, Jakhar claimed that the country’s education system is in shambles, and educational institutions are being ruined.

“Across the entire country, student union elections have been shut down as part of a conspiracy, allowing BJP-RSS affiliates to maintain their authoritarian grip on college and university campuses,” he alleged.

Jakhar said the Vice Chancellor of Delhi University is receiving repeated extensions, which raises serious questions. On what basis is their tenure being extended, he asked.

“If any student raises their voice on campus today, they are threatened with legal cases. Individuals aligned with a specific ideology are being recruited into colleges and universities. That’s why NSUI has initiated the organisation’s elections; we will form our units in every campus through elections,” he said.

The NSUI will give such students the opportunity to raise their voices, he added. Mugabasav said the election schedule will be announced state-wise, according to the roster provided by the NSUI. “The first step will be a membership drive in the states identified by the NSUI. Then the Chief Election Authority (CEA) will visit the respective state, hold a press conference, and officially announce the election process.

“The entire process will be tech-savvy, with an app-based, online system that is free, fair, and transparent in nature,” he said. Shastri said the Congress leadership has constituted a Central Election Authority to conduct internal elections in NSUI on April 30, which will work to ensure free and fair elections across the entire country.