Mumbai: Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor Khan has reacted to the ongoing student protests in the light of paper leaks.
On Thursday, the actress took to her Instagram, and penned a long note in which she reflected on the rights of students. She said that the students needs to be heard.
She wrote, “I’ve sat with this for a few days, but I can’t sit with it any longer. The voices of so many young people asking to be heard are impossible to ignore… and they shouldn’t be. We all know what education means to a child. It gives them confidence. It gives them hope. It gives families proof that tomorrow can be better than today. But education only works if children believe in it. And they stop believing the moment they suspect that honesty, hard work and merit don’t actually count”.
The raging issue of paper leaks across academia reached a fever pitch with the NEET paper leak. Activist Sonam Wangchuk sat on an indefinite strike to protests against the paper leak, and seek resignation of the Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The actress further mentioned, “No child should have to wonder if their effort will be enough. They deserve a system they can trust, where merit is real, effort is rewarded, and every child starts on equal footing. That isn’t a lot to ask. It’s the bare minimum. When an entire generation speaks with one voice about its own future, listening isn’t a courtesy we extend. It’s an obligation we owe them. Our children are watching us as closely as we watch them. How we respond now, not eventually, now, will tell them everything about whether fairness and trust are real, or just words adults use. They aren’t preparing for tomorrow. They are tomorrow”.
The protests intensified after Sonam was forcibly removed by Delhi Police from the protest site at Jantar Mantar in the early hours of July 18 after completing 21 days of an indefinite hunger strike. Authorities shifted him to a hospital, citing his deteriorating health, medical advice and compliance with a Delhi High Court order. Sonam Wangchuk has been on a hunger strike demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged irregularities in competitive exams.
(IANS)
