Young India Adhikar March on 7 February
AT a meet organised by the Young India Coordination Committee on 22 January 2019, journalists, intellectuals, lawyers, professors, and activists from various fields expressed their solidarity with the Young India Adhikar March to be held on 7 February 2019 from the Red Fort to Parliament.
Among those who expressed solidarity were senior Supreme Court advocate Prashant Bhushan, activist and MLA Jignesh Mevani, Delhi University Professors Nandini Sundar, Ratan Lal and Apoorvanand, senior journalist Anil Chamadiya, scientist and poet Gauhar Raza, and JNU Professors Jayati Ghosh and Nivedita Menon.
Speaking on the occasion, JNUSU President N Sai Balaji said that Modi will once again face Young India; but this time we are not going to give him the opportunity to become Prime Minister. He has destroyed our future. The unity of Young India on 7 February will shake the Modi government’s foundations and on the basis of our unity we will guarantee filling of all government posts lying vacant, spending 10% of GDP on education, and gender and social justice.
Senior SC lawyer Prashant Bhushan expressed happiness at the initiative to unite all students under one banner. This government which had promised 2 crore jobs every year to the youth needs to be exposed. This is the first time in history that all major institutions in the country are being attacked. The government which promised to fight corruption is being exposed on scams like Rafale and Nirav Modi. The government has all the anti-corruption agencies in its pocket and the chief posts are lying vacant.
JNU Professor Nivedita Menon said that the government has converted University campuses into battle grounds. It is important to note that students who are fighting for rights are fighting not just for themselves but for future generations. We sorely need bodies to guarantee gender justice. The fight of the students against the Modi government is patriotism, because they are demanding education, gender and social justice, and the implementation of reservation in accordance with the Constitution.
MLA and activist Jignesh Mevani said that the Gujarat model is full of unemployment and the Modi government wants to replicate that model all over the country. 7000 graduates have applied for 13 posts for waiters at the Maharashtra Secretariat canteen, whereas the required eligibility is Std IV pass. This is the situation the Modi government has produced in the country.
Prof Apoorvanand said that we may laugh at the illogicality and foolishness of all the unscientific comments made by our Prime Minister but behind such comments lurks the intent to build a majoritarian rule. The present government is destroying all democratic institutions and we must stop this under any circumstances. Like the alliance of political parties on the national level, an alliance of student-youth struggles across the country is the need of the hour.
Delhi University Prof Ratan Lal said that this government is destroying social justice inside campuses. They are bent on ending deprivation points, attacking reservation inside Universities, and closing the doors of Universities on students and teachers from marginalized sections.
Uttar Pradesh: Student-Youth Convention
Young India Coordination Committee organized a convention for students and youth from Universities, educational institutions and rural areas at Lohiya Mazdoor Bhavan in Lucknow on 21 January 2019. Addressing the convention RYA, AISA and other student-youth organization leaders called all students and youth to participate in the Young India Adhikar March in Delhi on 7 February. A rally was organized on 22 January from Allahabad University Chhatra Sangh Bhavan to the Collectorate under the banner of the YINCC.
RYA also organized a student-youth dialogue on 23 January at the Gorakhpur District Advocate Hall and called for maximum participation in the Young India Adhikar March to make it a resounding success. The dialogue program was addressed by Vishvavijay Singh, SC/ST Teachers Welfare Association leader Mahendra Gautam, senior journalist Manoj Singh, Purvanchal Sena leader Surendra Valmiki, student leader Sonu Siddharth and others. The dialogue was intended to discuss the plight of students and youth and appealed to them to ensure the success of the 7th February Young India Adhikar March.
