The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has strongly objected to the decision of the Union government’s move of converting Panjab University into a Central University.Addressing a press conference here, the party’s Chief Spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang said that the Punjab Government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann will not allow centralization of Panjab University at any cost.
Kang said that Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann on Sunday wrote a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan for their immediate intervention into the matter.
Kang that CM Mann has strongly condemned this move of the government and wrote a letter to the union home minister to prevent any change in the nature and character of the Panjab University.
Blaming Congress and Akali Dal for insidious policies and allowing the Union government to weaken the PU, Kang said that in 2008 former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had reportedly given his consensus to convert PU into a central university and even perfidious Congress leaders as part of High Power Committee had not objected to centre’s this proposal in 2021.
He said that the Punjab government bears 40 per cent share of the financial responsibility by paying maintenance deficit grants to the University.Kang said that CM unequivocally said that his government will never allow the BJP government to convert PU into a central university and the AAP government will submit its response opposing this move in the Punjab and Haryana High Court on August 30.
Kang said that PU is a symbol of Punjab’s legacy and is synonymous with the name of the State and youth not only from Punjab and Chandigarh but from neighbouring states get top-class education from this institution.