Agencies | Indore:
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said students increasingly feel that institutions meant to support and protect them are instead working against them.
Addressing students at the ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ programme in Indore, Mr. Gandhi said students were facing concerns relating to universities, transparency, examinations and their future.
“As I just mentioned, students feel that the very system designed to help and protect them, and to safeguard universities and colleges, is the one attacking them,” he said.
The programme, part of Mr. Gandhi’s student outreach initiative, focused on concerns raised by young people about the education system and employment. The Congress campaign has highlighted issues including examination irregularities, paper leaks, education costs, recruitment and unemployment.
During the interaction, a student told Mr. Gandhi that universities were not cooperating with students and alleged that there was widespread fraud and a lack of transparency.
“Absolutely. The universities are simply unable to cooperate; there is fraud going on everywhere. There is a complete lack of transparency,” the student said, seeking solutions to the issues raised by students.
Mr. Gandhi said students were among the country’s most important assets and argued that qualities such as curiosity, affection, humility, fearlessness, tolerance and honesty needed to be protected.
“The first thing we need to understand is that students are the future of India. No country can become strong without its students,” he said.
He also emphasised the importance of curiosity, saying students naturally question existing systems and seek answers.
Mr. Gandhi further argued that the existing “system” was uncomfortable with students who questioned authority.
He contrasted students who ask questions with what he described as “blind followers”, alleging that the latter are encouraged to promote hatred, intolerance and dishonesty.
These remarks formed part of Mr. Gandhi’s broader political criticism of the education and governance system. At the Indore event, he also criticised what he described as the concentration of power and the treatment of students and young people.
‘The ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ initiative has been launched by the Congress as a platform for students to raise concerns about education and employment. The campaign has included programmes in cities such as Kota, Pune, Dehradun and Prayagraj, before the Indore event.
The Congress has positioned the campaign around issues including paper leaks, recruitment delays, unemployment and problems faced by students in higher education.
The Indore programme was originally scheduled for September 12 but was subsequently shifted to September 19 after permission to use the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium was not granted, according to reports.
