NSUI peeved at overt importance to ABVP at Mangalore University seminar on NEP

MANGALURU: Peeved at the perceived importance given to Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) in various events that Mangalore University conducts, students affiliated to National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) staged a protest against the university on Monday.
Their ire was apparently stoked by a move by the university to host a seminar on NEP 2020: Pragmatic Education Policy for aspirational India jointly with ABVP here.
NSUI activists led by Farooq Bayabe, state secretary of the Congress’ student wing attempted to storm University College, seminar venue. With Mangaluru city police personnel keeping the protesters at bay at the gate, activists raised slogans against P S Yadapadithaya, the vice-chancellor. Subsequently, under strict vigil, they were allowed up to the seminar venue, 50-metre from the gate, where they raised slogans against this perceived bias.
Farooq later told TOI that NSUI on Saturday had given a representation to Uday Kumar M A, principal of the college against involving ABVP in holding the event, which he assured to convey to the university authorities.
“Aim of the protest was to oppose perceivable unbridled access that ABVP has to the university, which is the custodian of students from all sections of society and not meant to pander to a particular organisation alone,” he said.
Yadapadithaya in his inaugural remarks in an indirect reference to the protest said the event organised solely by the university is the first of its kind and certainly is not the last.
“We are open to holding more such debates with all stakeholders including other student bodies in the future,” he said.
Farooq said NSUI that has its reservation to the manner in which NEP was introduced will stage a separate protest against this in the near future.