BENGALURU: Students of Jain College, VV Puram, on Thursday alleged that they were forced to participate in a rally organised by BJP candidate Tejasvi Surya to file his nomination papers for Bangalore South Lok Sabha constituency.
Allegations were made on social media by the college students, which were later shared by activists. The clippings were from a Whatsapp group directing students to “compulsorily be present” there (rally).
The message, purportedly sent by the president of the students’ council of the college, soon went viral, garnering over 121.6K views on X.
“Greetings members, Tomorrow all members of the student council have to assemble near Maiyas Hotel Jayanagar at 9am for the Tejasvi Surya rally. You’ll be getting a T-Shirt so don’t be late. Everyone has to be there at the reporting time and no excuses will be entertained. You will be getting attendance for this,” read one of the screenshots.
When one of the students questioned why their attendance at the rally was mandatory and said that being a part of political rallies was a personal choice, it was dismissed by the council representatives. The council responded saying they were “obliged” to show up at the rally.
“Before you guys get into all of this, I would like to tell you guys that at the time of our fest Tejasvi Surya was obliged by the student council to attend our fest, and now it’s our turn to do the same. This is why it is compulsory for us to be there tomorrow as a council and nothing else. Anyone else having any other questions regarding this rally can text me personally,” continued the group conversation.
Reports said similar messages were also circulated in BMS College WhatsApp groups. However, while speaking to the media, the principal of Jain College refuted the claim for attendance.
Meanwhile, the Congress candidate for Bangalore South, Sowmya Reddy, urged the Election Commission of India to act on the matter immediately.