Liberate education from corporate chains, demand protesters on Quit India Day

By A Representative 

On the 84th anniversary of the Quit India Movement, the Youth Socialist Initiative (YSI) staged a mass public rally at Jantar Mantar on July 19, issuing a sharp indictment of what they term the "merchants of education" and demanding a complete reversal of the privatization, commercialization, and globalization of India’s educational system.

The four-hour assembly, which began at 10:00 AM, saw activists, students, and teachers present a "Jan Panchayat" memorandum, arguing that the current framework of education has been hijacked by corporate and communal forces, betraying the constitutional vision of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and the socialist ideals of Dr. Rammanohar Lohia. Quoting Lohia, the pamphlet read: "The standard of education is declining; consequently, the Government of India and educationists have raised the call for 'chhanti bharti' [meaning only a select few students should be granted entry into colleges and universities.] ... Therefore, there must be a vigorous demand for the opening of new universities and colleges; every student should have the right to pursue the education of their choice after passing the requisite examinations; there should be absolutely no discrimination based on whether one passed in the second or third division; and education should be affordable. Fees in schools and colleges should be reduced -or, if possible, eliminated entirely."

In a pointed statement released during the protest, YSI accused the Congress party of initiating the market-oriented shift in 1991, and the BJP/RSS of accelerating it through the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which they claim was shaped by industrialists Kumar Mangalam Birla and Mukesh Ambani. The organization also named political coalitions, private university owners, complacent bureaucrats, and even certain intellectuals and NGO figures as complicit in perpetuating a system that reduces education to the production of skilled labour for capitalist markets while fostering superstition and narrow-mindedness through communalization. The pamphlet specifically criticized "scholarly teachers who built their own careers in public colleges and universities yet work for private and foreign universities and sing their praises," as well as "individuals from the NGO world who accept domestic and foreign grants, positions, and awards in the name of piecemeal educational reforms, while upholding the market-driven character and economy of education."

The memorandum insisted that the content and language of every discipline, from science and technology to humanities and management, must be redesigned to cultivate rational, original-thinking citizens rather than servile workers. "Current education has been reduced to merely producing skilled labour for the existing capitalist market system. The communalization of education is fostering narrow-mindedness, superstition, and irrationality in society. This anti-educational situation must be ended," the document stated, adding that education across all fields "should be designed to cultivate rational citizens capable of making original contributions in their respective fields."

Drawing on the constitutional vision of Ambedkar, the protesters noted that the right to education was placed in the Directive Principles rather than Fundamental Rights, with a resolve to achieve it within ten years—a resolve they said was never fulfilled. "On the contrary, India's political and intellectual elite enacted laws contrary to this resolve, effectively surrendering education to the forces of market. This entire process must be reversed," the pamphlet declared. To achieve this, they demanded the repeal of all neoliberal laws, full state responsibility for education from primary to postgraduate levels, easy access to admissions for every student, and the nationalization of all institutions established through government grants or subsidized land.

The rally was addressed by Dr. Hiranya Himkar, who stressed that submitting such demands to a government entrenched in corporate politics and communalism would be futile. "Submitting a memorandum of the aforementioned demands to a government that fosters corporate interests and communalism - under the corporate politics that has taken deep root in the country - would be a futile exercise. Public awakening is the only way forward," he said, echoing Professor Anil Sadgopal's call that "the struggling masses of the country must integrate the fight for the right to education into their broader struggles for water, forests, land, and livelihoods."

The YSI concluded by calling upon all progressive organizations and individuals to join this cause, asserting that "to shatter the neo-imperialist grip on India's national life, it is essential, first and foremost, to liberate education from the chains of servitude." The gathering observed a moment of silence for the martyrs of the August Revolution before dispersing with a pledge to continue their campaign against what they see as the corporate capture of India's educational future. The event concluded at 2:00 PM, with organizers inviting all to future actions in the ongoing struggle for constitutional education.