JOIN USPrime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)- Bombay on Saturday to participate in the 56th annual convocation of the premier technical institute which recently got approval of the government for the 'Institute of Eminence' tag.
“He will deliver the convocation address at the 56th annual convocation of the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay,” the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement.
After the convocation, the prime minister will inaugurate a new building of the Department of Energy Science and Engineering and the Centre for Environmental Science and Engineering at the IIT- Bombay, it added.
Meanwhile, several news portals came with a news item saying a group of students of the IIT-Bombay has issued a statement questioning the institute's decision to invite Modi to be the guest of honour at this year’s convocation ceremony.
“We would like to question the contribution of the ruling government, whose head is PM Narendra Modi, in higher education and in other vital social issues affecting the social harmony and fundamental rights of a substantial section of the Indian population,” The Wire, a newsportal, quoted the group of students as saying.
Students, however, stated in their statement that nobody would be stop the prime minister from entering the campus or delivering his speech.
“Visits by politicians and ministers are not new for academic institutions, but the motive behind this invitation is also a matter of concern.
They also raised the issue of atrocities on Dalits and Muslims over the last few years, saying, “We ask how beef becomes so important an issue that living human beings are killed for it and how the murderers get perfect impunity from the state.”
They also questioned as to how the government could “so easily” decide who a citizen is and who is not, on the basis of their religious identities.
“We demand that he (Modi) as prime minister take a positive stand and condemn all the hate crimes committed and supported by his party members,” students said.