Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi interacts with students during the 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' programme in Kota, Rajasthan, on June 17. (IANS Photo)
New Delhi, June 25 (IANS): Supplementing Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's "Chhatron Ki Goonj" campaign, Congress leaders addressed press conferences in 28 cities across the country on Thursday to demand a complete overhaul of India's education system.
The Lok Sabha LoP had launched the campaign on June 17 from Rajasthan's Kota, with the Congress calling for the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, accusing him of symbolising the Prime Minister Narendra Modi government's "lack of vision and dogmatic approach" to education.
Jairam Ramesh, Member of Parliament and Congress General Secretary Communications In-charge, in a message on social media platform X, said, "The 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' campaign launched by Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi Ji from Kota in Rajasthan, has captured the attention of every youth across the country."
"Under the Narendra Modi government, the education system has turned into a terrifying extortion racket. Continuous paper leaks and malpractices in examinations have plunged the youth into deep despair," he added.
"Students across the country want Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to be sacked, but with the Prime Minister's blessings, his chair remains secure, and in his arrogance, he is labelling the students themselves as 'terrorists'," he said.
"Today, press conferences on this issue were organised by Congress leaders in 28 cities across the country," Ramesh added.
"The campaign saw senior Congress leaders addressing press conferences in cities, including Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Bilaspur, Chandigarh, Chennai, Dehradun, Delhi, Guwahati, Gwalior, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata, Kota, Nagpur, Patna, Pune, Purnia, Ranchi, Rohtak, Sikar, Srinagar, Trivandrum, Vijayawada, Allahabad, and Meerut," a Congress statement said.
Congress leaders such as Satej Patil, Varsha Gaikwad, Pawan Khera, Rajeev Shukla, Priyank Kharge, Gaurav Gogoi, Supriya Shrinate, Kanhaiya Kumar, Imran Pratapgarhi, and Srinivas BV spearheaded the initiative in their respective regions.
The Congress said that these press conferences marked the beginning of a national conversation on building a modern, inclusive, and future-ready education system.
The party invited students, teachers, parents, and concerned citizens to join the dialogue, emphasising that education must be restructured to meet the aspirations of India's youth rather than being subjected to ideological control.
