Pune: The student movement must go beyond examination irregularities and fight for access to education, social justice and democratic rights, said All India Students’ Association (AISA) national president Neha Bora while addressing students at Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) on Wednesday.
“The objective is not only to put pressure on people sitting in Parliament. There is a need to change the conversations happening in our drawing rooms, tea shops and relationships.
Speaking at ‘Student Dialogue: Gen-Z Rising (Pune Chapter)’, organised jointly by student organisations, Bora said educational opportunities available to women, Dalits, and students from deprived communities resulted from the struggles of earlier generations and must be protected. “We must ensure these doors remain open for future generations,” she said. Speaking to the media after the programme, Bora said her ongoing nationwide student tour had received an “overwhelming” response. She said students across states were raising issues ranging from hostel conditions and scholarships to examination irregularities and the NEET controversy. She said the objective was not to replicate earlier nationwide student movements but to bring about broader social change. The system needs an overhaul where the politics of hatred is replaced by the politics of solidarity and unity,” she said.
She also criticised what she described as attempts to weaken reservation and other social justice measures.
Referring to the legacy of Savitribai Phule, Jyotirao Phule and Fatima Sheikh, Bora said the student movement should draw from their struggle for social and educational equality.
