UP Cong accuses DDU vice-chancellor of promoting ABVP event; VC refutes charge

Lucknow/Gorakhpur (UP), Nov 8 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Congress President Ajay Rai on Friday accused the vice-chancellor of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gorakhpur University (DDU), professor Poonam Tandon, of distributing invitation cards for an event organised by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

The programme -- ABVP's 70th National Convention -- will take place at the state university's sports complex from November 22-24.

Condemning the vice-chancellor's alleged involvement in promoting an event organised by a student body linked to the BJP, Rai said in a statement issued by the Congress, "There is an attempt to saffronise educational institutions and we severely condemn all such efforts." He also claimed that funds meant for the education of children and youth are being spent to expand RSS' thought process.

Dismissing the allegations as "false and baseless", Tandon said, "I am not the host of the event, nor did I distribute invitation letters. I have only been invited to the programme. I was also invited for today's event (Bhoomi Pujan of the venue), which I couldn't attend due to prior commitments." The vice-chancellor further stressed that she had no role in organising the event.

Meanwhile, Congress' Gorakhpur district chief Nirmala Paswan also criticised the VC's alleged involvement in the ABVP event, saying, "The BJP government is using university administrators to push its agenda, which is shameful. Openly supporting a political group compromises the integrity and neutrality of the vice-chancellor's office." Samajwadi Party's Gorakhpur unit chief Brijesh Gautam said while he had no evidence to show that the VC distributed invitation cards for the event, he could not deny her alignment with the ruling party, as he urged Tandon to instead "focus on promoting education over political affiliation". PTI COR KIS ARI