Alongside DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav participated in a demonstration against the UGC's draft regulations on Wednesday at Delhi's Jantar Mantar by her party's student wing.
Rahul stated, "I have been saying this now for some time that the aim of the RSS is the eradication of all other histories, all other cultures, all other traditions in this country," in response to the DMK student wing's protest against the University Grants Commission's (UGC) proposed guidelines. That is where they are coming from and what they hope to accomplish. They attacked the Constitution in an effort to impose their own ideology, history, tradition, and language on the nation. They are also trying to influence the educational systems of the various states, which is just another way they are trying to further their goals."
Speaking in favor of the demonstration, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav also denounced the Center's New Education Policy.
"The Samajwadi Party fully supports this protest against the central government's introduction of the New Education Policy," Akhilesh stated. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee reportedly remarked that if you continue to help businessmen, you would eventually become their servants. This New Education Policy is a plot to give businessmen control over universities. They want to deprive state governments of their authority and make politicians work for business interests. This policy will never have our support.
"They want to seize all the powers of the state governments," he continued. Their goal is to turn politicians become manufacturers' servants. The New Education Policy will never be acceptable to us. I support the choice you made and all of the students present. I oppose the NEP. "I oppose the BJP."
A month after the Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a resolution on January 9 calling for the Center to immediately revoke the restrictions, the demonstration took place. The motion was backed by all parties except the BJP, including the AIADMK, Tamil Nadu's biggest opposition party, and Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), an ally of the NDA.
"The draft UGC rules are nothing more than an attempt by the Union Government to usurp universities that state governments have built using their own resources and economic strength," Chief Minister MK Stalin had stated at the time. The regulations are in opposition to federalism. Stalin recommended the withdrawal of the proposed UGC guidelines in a letter to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on January 20. In a separate letter, Stalin urged his counterparts in states that were not BJP-ruled to write resolutions opposing the Center's action.