The All India Students’ Association (AISA) has strongly criticised the manner in which the visit of RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat to the University of Lucknow was conducted, citing heavy police deployment, intelligence presence, and reported pre-emptive action against student leaders.
According to AISA, a public university is a constitutional space meant for debate, inquiry, scientific temper, and democratic engagement. The organisation stated that when the chief of a private ideological organisation is provided extensive security arrangements inside campus while students are reportedly monitored, warned, or restricted, it raises concerns about asymmetry in the functioning of public institutions.
AISA further referred to the historical record that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has faced bans at different points in independent India’s history- in 1948, during the Emergency in 1975, and in 1992- under varying political circumstances. The organisation also cited criticisms made by several leaders of the freedom movement regarding the RSS’s ideological positions. It argued that the concept of a “Hindu Rashtra,” often associated with the RSS, has been widely debated and critiqued in relation to constitutional principles of equality and secular democracy.
The University of Lucknow, AISA noted, is funded through public resources and governed by constitutional provisions. Article 19 of the Constitution guarantees freedom of speech and peaceful assembly. The organisation stated that these rights must be applied uniformly, irrespective of ideological affiliation.
AISA clarified that it does not oppose dialogue or the presence of diverse viewpoints on campus. However, it argued that dialogue cannot take place under conditions of intimidation or excessive securitisation. “If students must be neutralised before an ideological leader can enter campus, that is not academic exchange but institutional management of dissent,” the statement read.
The organisation further alleged that progressive speakers, opposition leaders, and student groups have previously faced permission barriers, event cancellations, and police scrutiny, while figures perceived to be aligned with the ruling establishment have received smoother facilitation. It described this as a double standard that requires institutional clarification.
AISA has put forward the following demands:
1. A public clarification from the University administration regarding the nature and necessity of police and intelligence deployment on campus.
2. A written assurance that no student will face disciplinary or legal consequences for peaceful democratic expression.
3. Equal institutional standards for all future speakers and events, irrespective of ideological affiliation.
4. That organisations whose ideological positions, in AISA’s view, contradict constitutional values of equality and secularism should not be granted institutional platforms within public universities.
Concluding its statement, AISA said it remains committed to defending campus democracy, student rights, and what it described as the constitutional character of public institutions.