The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has strongly opposed the central government's decision to impose 12% GST on hostel fees of central universities. The party termed the decision as dictatorial and accused the Modi government of deliberately obstructing the education of poor students.
Aam Aadmi Party Punjab Youth Wing President and Dharamkot MLA Devinderjeet Singh Laddi Dhons and Punjab Youth Development Board Chairman Parminder Goldy condemned the decision in a press conference on Wednesday at the party headquarters in Chandigarh.
MLA Devinderjeet Singh Laddi Dhons termed this decision "Tughlaqi Farman" and said that the Modi government is deliberately putting financial burden on poor students to keep them away from education. He said that education has always been tax-free, but this is very unfortunate that the Modi government is finding new ways to collect money from the students.
He said that the Aam Aadmi Party has been advocating tax-free education from the beginning. That's why we are strongly against this decision. Our party's student wing 'Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti' (CYSS) will protest against this decision and will not allow it to be implemented in Panjab University at any cost.
While addressing the media, Parminder Goldy said that on one hand, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is getting two hostels built in Punjab University at a cost of Rs 50 crore. On the other hand, the Modi government is looting money from the students by imposing GST on the hostel fees.
He appealed to the students of Panjab University to support CYSS in this campaign. Just as the Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi and Punjab introduced a better education model and improved the education system, similarly we will try to further improve the education system of Punjab University.