NEW DELHI : Two days after Delhi University announced to hold a ‘Run for Viksit Bharat’ event with 5,000 students participants on May 8, OP Jindal Global University (JGU) has also sent an email to the students announcing a ‘Viksit Bharat’ programme on Sunday.
The email said the event, named ‘Democracy in Action Programme’, will give “selected students” an opportunity to “work closely with the Chancellor of JGU, Naveen Jindal”, a candidate for the Lok Sabha poll from the Kurukshetra constituency in Haryana.
The ‘Viksit Bharat’ campaign was launched by the Prime Minister in December last year. It aims to give a platform to the youth to “contribute thoughts to the vision of ‘Viksit Bharat @2047’, the idea of a developed India by 2047, the 100th year of Independence”.
Earlier, Delhi University teachers’ groups on Friday condemned the event announced by the institution. The associations said the 2.5-km ‘Run for Viksit Bharat’ event, which came following a meeting between university officials and BJP leader Kuljeet Singh Chahal on Thursday, was a violation of the Election Commission’s Model Code of Conduct (MCC), enforced in view of the Lok Sabha elections.
The DTF (Delhi University Teachers’ Front) on Friday issued a statement refuting the varsity administration’s claim that the event is being organised to create awareness about and participation in the Lok Sabha polls. The teacher’s questioned the name of the event, ‘Run for Viksit Bharat’, saying ‘advertising’ a government campaign with the MCC in place is illegal.
Moreover, the DTF said, if the intention was to increase voter awareness and participation in the Lok Sabha polls, the event ought to have been organised only with prior permission and involvement of the Election Commission.