West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday asked the Mamata Banerjee Government not to "force student issues in political mire".
Taking to his twitter handle, Dhankhar said, "Why @MamataOfficial force student issues in political mire! Why thoughtlessly make it political hot potato! Student welfare is the top priority. Why not read Supreme Court judgement, its rationale and follow directives!" he stated.
"The Supreme Court is guided by student welfare. Directives are law of land. If @MamataOfficial unable to hold examinations as per deadline approach UGC for an extension. Why demagoguery ! " the Governor further asked.
"'Don't prey on students for sake of politicking', " he said adding, "Students are our future. Its matter of global competitiveness. It cannot be in political whirlpool. Silent majority of students do not seek to risk their prospects and capsize their future. A thought provoking input- an eye opener @MamataOfficial, " the Governor iterated.
Yesterday, Dhankhar welcomed the Supreme Court verdict on UGC guidelines. Taking to Twitter, he said, ''The state cannot promote students without final year examination, said the Supreme Court. If any State has taken a decision that it is not possible to hold exams, we grant them liberty to approach the UGC to seek an extension of the deadline," Dhankhar tweeted.
The apex court yesterday ruled that final year college examinations must be held this year but states can ask for dates to be deferred beyond September 30 if they wanted to in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Incidentally, the Mamata Banerjee Government is against holding of the examinations citing the pandemic and had requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take up the matter in the SC. Banerjee yesterday said the West Bengal Government would try to hold the university examinations in October before Durga Puja.
Making no bones about her unhappiness with the UGC, Banerjee said, "I won't blame the court. But I want to ask the UGC, why are you putting students in trouble?" She made it clear, " We have decided we won't disturb students. There will be no university examinations in September. Students from other districts often sit for the test in Kolkata. Who will be responsible if they can't reach the centre due to lack of transport? " she asked.
Speaking on the issue of the reopening of schools and colleges in the state, Ms Banerjee said, "When schools were opened in the US, one lakh students got infected." It might be mentioned that a few days ago, the West Bengal Government had announced that the educational institutions in the state will remain closed till September 20. The State Government has also urged the Central Government to postpone the NEET and JEE 2020 examinations, slated for September.
