"Student movements shouldn't be handled with heavy hand": Congress MP Manish Tewari suggests JPC to review education system

After police action against protesters in the Cockroach Janata Party's 'Chalo Sansad' March on July 20, Tewari said that a student movement has never been suppressed with the use of "excessive force."

He recommended that the Centre should appoint a Joint Parliamentary Committee to look into the challenges of the education system.

In an interview with ANI, the Congress leader recalled the student-led protests against the recommendations of the Mandal Commission in 1990 and said, "I was the national president of the National Students Union of India between 1988 and 1993. I have had a long tenure from 1981 to 2000 in the student and youth movement of India. When I saw what happened on Monday, it took me back to July 1990 when the anti-Mandal movement started. I was then the national president of the NSUI, and our university-level leaders were actually the leaders of this movement. And I saw the government taking a very obdurate stand. The Supreme Court stepped in and stayed the recommendations of the Mandal Commission. Later on, they upheld it in the Indira Sahni judgment, which of course then was accepted by everybody."

He said that the government should reach out to the protesters and engage in a dialogue.

"A large number of innocent people all across the country lost their lives. Student movements are never handled with a heavy hand. You need to talk to them. You need to reach out to them. You need to engage in a dialogue with them. If you think by the force of operation or by unleashing repression or beating them up with batons or using excessive force, you will be able to quell or squelch a movement. It has never happened. And my long experience in the student movement tells me to the contrary. So therefore, the government would be very well advised to talk to these students," he said.

The Congress leader said that the NEET paper leak in May was the trigger for the youth to protest, which, he claimed, has been frustrated of unemployment and a rise in the cost of living.

Tewari said, "There are problems in India's education system. Those problems need to be fixed bottom up. The students' point of view should be heard. It should be appreciated because this is not only about the NEET exam. The NEET exam is really a trigger for more deep-seated frustrations emanating out of a very widespread scourge of unemployment and the rising cost of living. At times, most of these movements actually become a trigger for people to articulate the grievances which possibly have been piling up in their mental space."

Offering suggestions to the Centre, he added, "I would strongly urge the government to reach out to the students, engage in a dialogue with them, find a modus operandi to see how the problems arise. The education sector is to be fixed. My prescription would be constituting a joint parliamentary committee and looking at the challenges in India's education system."

This comes amid widespread protests in Delhi and other cities following the Cockroach Janata Party's Chalo Sansad march on July 20. The protest was met with police action and at least 10 FIRs.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said the Central Government has reiterated its commitment to dialogue, stating that it has extended multiple formal invitations to student representatives for discussions.

Speaking to ANI on the updated proposal for talks with the youth-led movement, Union Minister Jitendra Singh emphasised that the government is not letting "prestige" hinder the path to a resolution.

"The government has sent formal proposals for discussions with their representatives four times since last afternoon. This is a standing invitation to all our youth friends that the government is ready for discussions on all issues at your convenience, at any time," Singh said.

Underscoring the government's flexible approach, Singh, who is also the Minister of State in the Prime Minister's office, said, "We do not stand on prestige. Union Health Minister JP Nadda and I will be present for discussions. Slowly, by way of discussion, we will progress towards a solution."

"Discussions can take place either at JP Nadda's office or residence. This is a part of the series of continuous steps taken by the government for the welfare of the students. Humbly, I appeal to you all to come and have discussions," he added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that fast-track courts will be set up to ensure swift and stringent punishment for those involved in paper leaks. (ANI)