Tension at Osmania University over Rahul Gandhi’s visit

Naveen S Garewal

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Hyderabad, May 2

Tension continues in the prestigious Osmania University (OU) here as Congress-backed students and university authorities refuse to agree to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s visit to the campus, where he wants to interact with students on May 7.

Today, the Telangana High Court refused to intervene in a petition seeking direction from the university to allow this interaction, saying “it was up to the university to decide whom it wants on campus”.

Osmania University has made it clear that it will not allow any political activity on campus. It has reiterated that the decision on the issue was taken way back in 2017 and was not a recent one, as was being made out by some politicians, it claimed.

State Congress leaders have not taken the decision well and have allegedly been engineering protests by its student wing National Students Union of India (NSUI), and other party workers. Congress leadership has alleged that the university was forced by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao (KCR) to prevent Rahul Gandhi from visiting the campus.

In rebuttal, the university authorities have said the decision was taken five years ago to prohibit all political activity on campus. Further, the university’s Executive Council passed a resolution that prohibited any political activity on the campus.

Congress party’s students’ wing NSUI, held a protest on campus on Sunday when 18 students were arrested. Congress is unwilling to take the decision lying down. Telangana Congress president and MP, A Revanth Reddy, announced that Rahul Gandhi would meet the arrested NSUI students in Chanchalguda jail on May 7.

Osmania University is politically very sensitive and was the hub of activity during the agitation for Telangana statehood. It boasts of its prodigies like late Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao and leaders like M Chenna Reddy, S Jaipal Reddy, etc.

The protests that started on campus yesterday continued today in front of Arts College on the campus. NSUI students raised slogans against the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) Government and university authorities. Police have beefed up security on the campus, given the continuing protests.

Congress MP and former Congress president Uttam Kumar Reddy have announced that Rahul Gandhi will visit the university despite any opposition. “When BJP leaders can visit Osmania University and address meetings and when birthdays of KCR and KTR can be celebrated, why can’t our leader visit the campus? Is it the property of CM KCR?” he said in a statement.