NEW DELHI: The Congress party's student wing, National Student Union of India (NSUI), organised the "Chhatra Adhikar March" on Friday to protest against rising unemployment in the country.
Thousands of students and party workers from Punjab, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh marched towards the Parliament building raising slogans of "Naukri Do Ya Degree Wapis Lo" (give us jobs or take our degrees back) to protest various issues including unemployment, scholarships and fellowship grants.
Speaking at the protest, Congress leader Udit Raj criticised the government's decision of "lateral entry" into central government departments, saying it was a "violent strike on the employment aspect of the youth".
"There are 8-10 lakh students preparing for the IAS exams in Mukherjee Nagar. With lateral entry into government secretariats, not only reserved categories but the students of general category too will suffer," Raj said.
"You will have to protest against those as well. We won't allow lateral entry at any cost. The government is planning to take 400 IAS officers through lateral entry without any exams. They are ruining your future," he said.
The protest was attended by senior Congress leaders, including Rajya Sabha MP Deepender Singh Hooda, former railway minister Pawan Bansal, and party spokesperson Alka Lamba.
Hooda congratulated the NSUI for supporting the farmers' protest by organising 'langar' and helping out people during the lockdown period.
He proposed a new slogan -- "Jai Samvidhan, Jai Naujavan".