Osmania University students hold protest rally demanding permission to allow Rahul Gandhi to visit campus

The students of NSUI who have been waiting for Congress chief Rahul Gandhi's visit for the last four years have said that during his upcoming visit on August 14 to the varsity he will address an 'apolitical' event on the issue of employment. It is no secret that employment has been a major challenge for the ruling TRS government in the state and a seminar on 'India and Telangana Education and Employment' can hardly be without political undertones.

It may be recalled that last year OU released a circular banning all non-academic public gathering on the campus nearly 500 students from the Osmania University Joint Action Committee (OU JAC) along with other Dalit and Left students organisations, staged a protest rally from OU Library to the Arts College demanding permission to allow Congress chief to address students in the varsity during his visit to the State on August 14.

"It will be an hour-long programme on Aug 14 on pressing issues like education and employment. Since there are no political undertones to it, we don't see any reason why the administration should withhold permission," M Krishank, Congress student leader said. He added that ABVP and TRS backed students were against Gandhi's visit to the university because last year students had not given the desired reception to chief minister during the Centenary celebrations. Manavatha Roy from the Unemployed JAC, OU, justified the political stand of the seminar by saying that Gandhi would be accompanied by only the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president N Uttam Kumar Reddy, on account of the protocol. "It is being organised for the students and is for students. It has nothing to do with politics," he said. Though the initials choice of venue for the seminar was Arts College, later students sought permission to hold it at the Tagore auditorium. The university administration, however, hasn't confirmed or denied approval.