In a press release, the party said the campaign seeks a comprehensive overhaul of India’s education system, beginning with the resignation of Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan.

“Through this campaign, the Indian National Congress demands a comprehensive overhaul of India’s education system, beginning with the resignation of Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, who epitomises the Modi government’s lack of vision and dogmatic approach to education,” the statement said.

The Congress also accused the BJP-led government of promoting the privatisation, centralisation and “Sanghification” of education over the past 12 years.

“Over the past twelve years, the RSS-BJP government has only pursued the privatisation, centralisation, and Sanghification of education, and done too little to prepare India’s youth for the future. The crisis today is not only one of unemployment but also of employability,” it said.

The party said the press conferences would mark the beginning of a national conversation on building a modern, inclusive and future-ready education system.

“These press conferences mark the beginning of a national conversation on building a modern, inclusive, and future-ready education system, and the Congress Party invites students, teachers, parents, and concerned citizens to be a part of this crucial conversation,” the statement added.

-Satej Patil in Ahmedabad

-Varsha Gaikwad in Bangalore

-Imran Masood in Bhopal

-Pawan Khera in Bhubneswar

-Jaivardhan Singh in Bilaspur

-Rajeev Shukla in Chandigarh

-Priyank Kharge in Chennai

-Ranjeet Ranjan in Dehradun

-Gaurav Gogoi in Delhi

-Shilpi Neha Tirkey in Guwahati

-Pappu Yadav in Gwalior

-Vikrant Bhuria in Hyderabad

-Abhishek Dutt in Indore

-Ashok Tanwar in Jaipur

-Supriya Shrinate in Kolkata

-Jignesh Mevani in Kota

-Jeetu Patwari in Nagpur

-Anupam in Patna

-Kanhaiya Kumar in Pune

-Nadeem Javed in Purnia

-Imran Pratapgarhi in Ranchi

-Kuldeep Indora in Rohtak

-Srinivas B.V. in Sikar

-Uday Bhanu Chib in Srinagar

-Kannan Gopinathan in Trivandrum

-Ragini Nayak in Vijayawada

-Umang Singhar in Allahabad

-Rahul Kaswan in Meerut

He held the first rally of the campaign on June 17 in Kota, where he appealed to students and young job seekers to join the protest movement.

On X, Gandhi said that young people in India are being “punished for daring to dream” and that hard work no longer guarantees success. He said every paper leak, cancelled exam and delayed recruitment drive is a systemic failure and a setback to the dreams of millions of students and job seekers.

Describing the campaign as a fight for the future of India’s youth, he said it would spread across the country.

“Let’s come together and become a roar that can’t be ignored. Starting from Kota, then reaching every corner of the country,” Gandhi said.

During his interaction with students at the rally, he said the current education system is “extremely stressful and unfair”.

“India’s education system is an extortion machine. We want a system that allows you to dream big,” he said, adding that young people are facing too much pain, stress and unhappiness.

“This is not a political meeting. This is a meeting about you, about the young people who are struggling to get a future. This evening is about you, the challenges that you are dealing with every single day,” he said in his opening remarks.

He also said the system pushes students mainly towards a few career paths such as engineering, medical and civil services, while discouraging other options.

“Why is India only asking children to do five things? The answer is money, because the system makes money through these five routes,” he alleged.