New Delhi: BJP national president JP Nadda faced protests by angry student activists as he made a brief stopover at his alma mater Patna College on Saturday, news agency PTI reported. Some activists of the All India Students Association (AISA) raised slogans shouting "JP Nadda go back" and also raised a black flag demanding the withdrawal of the New Education Policy (NEP), apart from grant of central status to Patna University.
According to reports, police had to resort to mild baton-charge after the supporters of AISA and BJP-backed ABVP clashed during the protest in the college.
Nadda later delivered a brief speech where he said that he wanted to meet the protesting students. The BJP national chief also said that he was ready to sort out the grievances of the students and would also look into their other demands.
Among other demands, AISA said that a multi-storied building should be built in the college, apart from an auditorium, the lack of which made it difficult to organise convocations.
After the speech, Nadda made a safe exit from the college campus as the police personnel present there cleared the way, shoving the unruly student activists.
As per reports, no arrests have been made in connection with the incident so far, police said.
It is to be noted that JP Nadda, who hails from Himachal Pradesh but spent his early years in Patna, was in the city to inaugurate a two-day conclave of the BJP’s seven wings (morchas) that will come to a close on Sunday with the address of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Earlier in the day, the BJP national president also held a road show in the Bihar capital where he arrived to inaugurate a two-day joint national executive meeting of various cells of the party.
Nadda was received by deputy chief ministers Tarkishore Prasad and Renu Devi, Union minister Nityanand Rai, Bihar BJP chief Sanjay Jaiswal and state cabinet ministers as he arrived at the Jay Prakash Narayan International Airport on Saturday.