Uttarakhand University Giving Extra Marks For Attending PM Modi's Event? A Fact-Check

A notice allegedly issued by a university in Uttarakhand asking students to mandatorily attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Sunday event marking the silver jubilee celebrations of the formation of the state for "50 internal marks" has gone viral, with the Centre and the university fact-checking it.

The viral notice, which appears to be issued by the Dev Bhoomi Uttarakhand University, asks all B.Tech CSE and specialisation (2nd year) and BCA (2nd year) students to attend the event.

"Students are hereby informed that they must attend the upcoming event at FRI on Sunday, 9th November 2025, where an interaction with the Prime Minister of India will take place. Attendance in this event will be considered under the Bharatiya Gyan Parampara (Indian Knowledge System) course, and 50 internal marks will be awarded to each participant. Hence, participation in this event is mandatory for all programs having the Indian Knowledge System course," the notice read.

While it mentions that the order was issued by the BCA Head of Department and the B.Tech CSE 2nd Year program coordinator, it does not have any signatures on it.

The notice quickly went viral, with the Opposition leaders hitting out at the BJP. Uttarakhand Congress spokesperson Garima Mehra Dasauni alleged that the BJP has "run out of workers and leaders".

Lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan said, "Dev Bhumi Uttarakhand University to award 50 marks for attending Modi's rally! And how many for shouting Modi Modi?"

The Press Information Bureau (PIB) Fact Check division - the Indian government's official fact-checking agency fact-checked the viral notice, calling it "fake".

"A letter allegedly issued by Devbhoomi Uttarakhand University is being circulated on social media, claiming that students' attendance at Prime Minister @narendramodi's programme has been made mandatory and that internal examination marks will be given for it. This letter is #Fake. No such order has been issued by the university," it said.

A letter allegedly issued by Devbhoomi Uttarakhand University is being circulated on social media, claiming that students' attendance at Prime Minister @narendramodi's programme has been made mandatory and that internal examination marks will be given for it.#PIBFactCheck

❌… pic.twitter.com/dxP1XajxU4

— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) November 8, 2025

The university, too, issued a clarification, saying the notice is "false" and "not issued or approved by them".

"It has come to our attention that a fake notice has been circulated in the name of DBUU regarding marks for the upcoming visit to FRI on 09 November 2025. We would like to clarify that the notice is completely false and not issued or approved by the University. It does not bear any official signature, reference number, or authorization. Please rely only on official DBUU communication channels for accurate information," the university wrote on Facebook.

The university also filed a complaint, based on which the Dehradun police filed a case for "spreading misleading news on social media". Officials said that they are engaged in identifying and taking strict legal action against those spreading fake news.

"A letter circulating on social media on the letterhead of the private educational institution, Devbhoomi Uttarakhand University, stated that students of the institution were awarded higher marks for attending the Prime Minister's rally on 09/11/2025. Regarding the viral letter, Subhashit Goswami, Registrar of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand University, Prem Nagar, submitted a petition to the Premnagar police station, stating that the viral letter was forged and that no such official letter had been issued by his educational institution," an official release said.

The police have also appealed to the people not to propagate or disseminate any misleading information on social media without any verification.