Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Saturday described Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation as a "victory" for students, while accusing Union Home Minister Amit Shah of authorising the use of pellet guns and other "lethal weapons" against student protesters.
Addressing the media after Pradhan stepped down amid nationwide protests over irregularities in the education system, Rahul Gandhi said the agitation had demonstrated the power of students standing up for democracy.
"First of all, this is the victory of our students. This is the future of India," Gandhi said.
Warning the Centre against ignoring the concerns raised by students and the Opposition, Gandhi said the resignation should not be viewed as the end of the matter.
"If you continue down this path, you will see 10 times the scale of what transpired," he said.
Calling the protests a broader message to the government, Gandhi added that the movement reflected growing public discontent.
"This is a warning from the students and the Opposition that the government cannot run India like its personal fiefdom," he said.
Pradhan was a symbol of a broken education system, says Rahul
The Congress MP said Pradhan had come to symbolise corruption, incompetence and the deterioration of India's education system.
"Pradhan is a symbol. A symbol of corruption, a symbol of destruction of the education system, a symbol of incompetence. He had to go. And it is good that he went," he said.
Rahul Gandhi alleged that India's education system had been systematically weakened over the years.
"The education system which used to be our pride, the whole world acknowledged that the education system of India is very good. It has been under attack for years. It is being captured, it is being privatised," he said.
He also linked the protests to rising unemployment, saying the demonstrations reflected the frustration of young people.
"This was a reaction to unemployment," he said.
