Lok Janshakti Party president Ram Vilas Paswan seeks quota for weaker sections in private varsities bill

MUMBAI: Lok Janshakti Party president Ram Vilas Paswan met Maharashtra Governor K Sankaranarayanan here today, seeking quota for weaker sections in the private universities bill, passed by the Maharashtra State Assembly.

Paswan, who led a 14-member delegation of the Lok Janshakti Party to the meeting with the Governor at Raj Bhavan, said the Private Universities Bill (Self-Financed Universities Bill) is "totally against the Constitution" as it does not provide for the constitutional safeguards to weaker sections guaranteed by it.

Mentioning that the Bill in its present format will put education in the hands of private education mafia, he requested that all weaker sections including SC, ST, VJNT and OBCs should get reservations in admissions and recruitments in Self-Financed Universities.

Paswan demanded that the decision-making authorities of the Self-Financed Universities including the Governing Body should have representation for SC, ST, VJNT and OBCs.

Mentioning that neither the State Government nor the Chancellor has any control over the private universities, he demanded that the private universities should be brought under the control of UGC and HRD Ministry.

The Governor said he would discuss the issues raised by the delegation with the Chief Minister.