Mamata Govt turned Bengal’s premier institutions into centres of political anarchy: Dharmendra Pradhan
New Delhi: Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan expressed deep concern over the current state of educational institutions in West Bengal, alleging that the Mamata Banerjee-led government has turned them into centres of “political anarchy”.
Pradhan said Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s resolve to restore Bengal’s institutions to their past glory and academic excellence was, in essence, a call to secure the future of the state.
Referring to the recent incident at Jadavpur University, the minister said the report of the University Grants Commission (UGC) expert committee serves as a “concrete document” of the state government’s failure. He noted that an institution which once produced eminent academicians and scientists is now marked by “negligent” administration and “zero accountability”.
Citing the UGC panel’s findings, Pradhan said the anti-ragging framework at the university was described as “weak”, and a recommendation had been made to cut grants by 10 per cent. This, he added, reflects how the state government has allegedly used campuses merely for political influence.
The Union minister further alleged that under the rule of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), political interference has been prioritised over academic responsibility in Bengal’s universities, leading to a complete collapse of the security mechanism. He said ensuring a “fear-free” campus environment was the responsibility of the state government, in which it has “completely failed”.
Pradhan asserted that students in Bengal no longer accept decline as their destiny, and the demand for reforms in educational institutions has now taken the shape of a mass movement.
Responding to remarks by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the minister said her “discomfort” over the Prime Minister’s push for reforms indicates that she is more concerned about losing political control than about the education of Bengal’s youth.
He added that people of Bengal have now understood that the real threat lies not within the institutions themselves, but in the politics that has paralysed them for decades.
