Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has come in support of Karan Kataria, a student of London School of Economics, who was disqualified last week from contesting the LSE Students’ Union (LSESU) poll over “baseless” allegations.
The discrimination, abuse and harassment faced by Karan Katariya, an Indian student at the London School of Economics due to his ethnicity and religious beliefs is an extremely disgraceful and unfortunate occurrence said ABVP in a statement.
Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, as the largest and the most prominent student organisation of Indian students, believes that students must be treated in a dignified, democratic manner following broader human values. ABVP has been participating in and has won various students’ union elections across the length and breadth of India, and has stood for the maintenance of democratic ethos and to ensure that proper respect is accorded to diversity on campuses, the statement reads.
India, being the mother of democracy and the largest democracy has shown the world the way forward by ensuring equitable opportunity and representation to all, across the cultural and social spectrums, in various fields.
The statement released by ABVP further reads that, “ABVP is of the view that students must be treated as an important stakeholders in academic institutions and their opinions shall be accorded proper consideration. An educational institution must ensure that its diversity, of culture, ideology and opinion must be taken into account and its activities must be carried out such that no one is discriminated against”.
Yagyawalkya Shukla, National General Secretary, ABVP said, “The harassment faced by an Indian student, Karan Katariya, for his nationality, religious identity and ideology is unfortunate and must be condemned. Students are important stakeholders in academic institutions. An institute like the London School of Economics must ensure that no student is discriminated against based on their nationality or religious and ideological views. ABVP, as the foremost representative of the Indian student community, appeals to the global student community that they stand in favour of Karan Katariya being behaved in a manner in line with the democratic ethos. Earlier on April 7, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has written to the London School of Economics on the complaints of postgraduate law student Karan Kataria that he was facing discrimination and harassment at LSE.
Haryana’s Karan Kataria is a brilliant student but he has been feeling unsafe due to the recent incidents, the CM said adding that Kataria’s disqualification from the students’ union election was not substantiated with reasons and was due to “discrimination of account of race and beliefs”.
The CM in his letter mentioned that his mother and sister met him and his mother was in severe mental distress because of what happened.
It is to be noted that, on April 2, an Indian-origin student from LSE Law School, The London School of Economics and Political Science, Karan Kataria exposed Hinduphobia and anti-India rhetoric prevalent on the LSE campus.
Karan Kataria posted on social media that he was disqualified from contesting elections for the LSE Student Union after a smear campaign was launched against him.
He said, “Unfortunately, some individuals could not bear to see an Indian-Hindu leading the LSESU and resorted to vilifying my character and very identity in what was clearly in line with the alarming cancel culture which is uprooting our social communities.
