UP’s education system ‘drenched in corruption’: Congress

In a scathing attack on the Uttar Pradesh government, UP Congress President Ajay Rai on Friday accused the ruling BJP of completely failing the state’s education system, which he claimed is now “drenched in corruption.”

Addressing a press conference at the UP Congress headquarters, Rai announced that the Congress party will contest all 11 upcoming Legislative Council seats, including both Teachers’ and Graduates’ constituencies, with full strength and commitment.

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Flanked by the newly appointed Coordinator of the Congress Teachers’ Cell, Dr Amit Kumar Rai, Co-Coordinator Prof Shravan Kumar Gupta, and other senior leaders, Rai said that the voices of teachers across Uttar Pradesh have been systematically silenced. He particularly highlighted the plight of teachers working in unaided schools and colleges, who neither receive fair wages nor have job security.

“The BJP government has no roadmap for the future of teachers in unaided institutions,” Rai stated. “Whether it’s secondary schools, degree colleges, primary schools, madrasas, or Sanskrit institutions, every segment is facing neglect, mismanagement, and deliberate underfunding,” he added.

New Teachers’ Cell Coordinator Dr Amit Kumar Rai emphasised that teachers in unaided institutions are being exploited. He demanded equal pay for equal work, UGC-grade salaries for unaided college teachers, and the reinstatement of the Old Pension Scheme, something, he noted, that Congress governments have already implemented in other states.

Dr Rai also criticised the discontinuation of traditional degrees like Aalim and Fazil in madrasas, which he said was depriving students of higher education opportunities. He further alleged deliberate delays in recognising these degrees through Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti Language University.

Prof Shravan Kumar Gupta condemned the closure of many government primary schools and accused the state government of pushing education into private hands. He called the lack of teacher recruitment since 2018 a direct violation of the Right to Education Act.

The Congress leadership vowed to mobilise teachers and education stakeholders across the state to build a strong movement against the current government’s policies.