Punjab Newsline, Chandigarh-
Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa, launched a blistering attack on the BJP-led Chandigarh Administration, condemning the police lathi charge on students of Panjab University who were peacefully demonstrating under the banner of “Panjab University Bachao Morcha.”
Calling the police action a “brazen assault on democracy,” Bajwa accused the administration of converting the university campus into a fortress, with barricades at every entry point and students forcibly prevented from entering.“Peaceful protest is not a crime — it is a constitutional right,” Bajwa said. “The attempt to crush dissent through brute force is outrageously undemocratic and exposes the BJP’s fear of student voices.”
The senior Congress leader blamed the BJP-led Union Government for orchestrating what he described as a systematic takeover of autonomous institutions, undermining their independence through centralised control. Citing the New Education Policy as a key instrument in this agenda, Bajwa said the government’s intent to “hijack Panjab University’s governance and sever its historic bond with Punjab” now stands fully exposed.
“The BJP has made repeated attempts to dissolve and restructure the University’s Senate and Syndicate,” Bajwa recalled. “Each time, it was the united resistance of students, opposition parties, farm unions, and civil society that forced the Centre to retreat. Now, by manipulating the Senate election process, they are striking again at the heart of democracy.” Drawing from his own experience, Bajwa reminded that he has long been part of the university’s democratic tradition.
“As a former member of both the Syndicate and Senate of Panjab University, I have personally raised the genuine concerns of our alumni and staff. Today, their voices — along with the institution’s democratic ethos — stand dismissed,” he said.“From Parliament to our universities, the BJP is dismantling every democratic space and replacing it with control, nomination, and blind obedience. Panjab University was built on the spirit of autonomy, debate, and academic freedom — values that the BJP simply cannot tolerate. This is not reform. This is the death of democracy on our campuses.”
Reaffirming his solidarity with the protesting students, Bajwa called their demand for early Senate elections “legitimate, just, and long overdue.” He cautioned the administration against any further attempts to muzzle student voices or dilute Punjab’s stake in the University.
“The youth of Punjab will not allow Panjab University — a living emblem of our intellectual and cultural legacy — to become a pawn in the BJP’s political game,” he said. “If the Centre continues this undemocratic interference, it will face stiff and united resistance from the people of Punjab.”