Nepali Congress (NC) General Secretary Gagan Thapa has proposed to bar professors, teachers and students from NC membership.
Pointing that politicization has ravaged the education sector he has called for debate inside the party to ban professors, teachers and students from NC membership. He has stressed that situation was different when he was in student politics with the restrictions imposed by autocratic monarchy and the threat of Maoist insurgency, and the time demanded politics of resistance. He has added that students and teachers no longer need to join politics.
“Why make chairman of school management committee, campus chief and vice-chancellor Congress?” Thapa has asked while addressing a program in his constituency of Kathmandu-4. “The education sector has been ravaged after we also competed to make Congress when UML made organizations in different names. People are angry due to that.”
Thapa’s proposal, however, has not entered for formal discussion in the grand old party that has not convened central committee meeting in 11 months. “Why not debate about this in the party? Good professors can join politics after resignation if they so wish. We would then ask them to contest for ward chairman from our ward or mayor.”
He has also slammed the party’s student wing Nepal Student Union for thrashing and misbehaving with teachers and professors. “Can I smear soot on someone’s body merely because the person did not do what I said? Can I attack any person be it professor or others for not obeying my instruction or I don’t like the person?” he fumed. “There should not be any ifs and buts on this issue of smearing soot and thrashing professors. That is wrong.”
