Opposition parties have alleged that HRD Minister Smriti Irani is acting like the "patron saint of ABVP".
After Hyderabad varsity and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Allahabad University was at the centre of a row that escalated today with eight Opposition parties targeting Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Smriti Irani over alleged harassment of its Student's Union President, accusing her of acting like Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad's (ABVP) "patron saint".
"We are agonized over the fact that the first ever lady President of Allahabad University Student's Union Richa Singh, a PhD scholar, is being harassed by the administration...," the parties that included Congress, Left and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) said in a joint statement.
CPI general secretary S Sudhakar Reddy separately asked the BJP-RSS combine to "keep off" Allahabad University, alleging that RSS students wing ABVP was trying to "saffronise" it after "targeting" JNU and Hyderabad Central University, and sought action against those trying to "create tension" at its campus.
KC Tyagi of Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) raised the issue of the "authoritarian attitude" of Allahabad University Vice-Chancellor during Zero Hour in Rajya Sabha, saying Richa Singh had written to all lawmakers on the matter and about gender insensitivity.
"First we saw the sacrifice of Rohith, then the Kanhaiya episode and now Richa Singh episode is in the process."
Jairam Ramesh and Rajeev Shukla (Congress), Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M), D Raja (CPI), K C Tyagi (JD-U), Javed Ali Khan (Samajwadi Party), Tiruchi Siva (DMK), Bhagwant Mann (AAP) and Jaiprakash Yadav (Rashtriya Janata Dal) were signatories to the statement.
"A government, which refuses to learn that autonomy of education institution is foundation of democracy, is sowing widespread discontent in campuses by its blatant support to ABVP's goondaism," they said.
Noting that Richa Singh had won as an independent candidate in Allahabad University while all the other seats were won by ABVP, the leaders claimed she was in the eye of the storm for protesting against a visit of firebrand BJP lawmaker Yogi Adityanath to the campus.
Alleging that the HRD Minister is acting like the "patron saint of ABVP", they said, "we wish to remind her that she is a minister of this vast, diverse country and not just the RSS/BJP.
"It is her responsibility to encourage and protect all Constitutional freedoms in University campuses. If Richa Singh is made a victim of ABVP's diktats, on the heels of Rohith Vemula and Kanhaiya Kumar, then the students of this nation will be forced to rise in revolt," the statement added.
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