'No Invite, Just Loud Entry': Delhi University Slams Rahul Gandhi’s Surprise Campus Visit, Labels It 'Breach of Protocol'

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has landed in controversy after making an unannounced visit to Delhi University’s (DU) North Campus on Thursday, May 22. The university administration has strongly condemned the visit, branding it as a violation of campus protocol and accusing Gandhi’s entourage of disrupting the functioning of the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU).

The visit, which reportedly lasted close to an hour, saw Gandhi engage in a closed-door interaction with students from marginalised communities, including those from Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC), to discuss issues surrounding representation and academic equality. The meeting took place inside the DUSU president’s office, which was cordoned off during the event.

DU Calls It ‘Uninformed, Unauthorised’ Entry

In a sharply worded press release, the university’s Proctor’s Office accused Rahul Gandhi of entering the campus without prior notice or clearance, “for the second time.” The statement read, “Shri Rahul Gandhi has done this for the second time... coming to the university without any intimation and information to University of Delhi.”

The university also claimed the area was taken over by security personnel, effectively locking out the DUSU secretary and other members. “Some students were locked in the room of the secretary, DUSU, and were misbehaved with by NSUI students,” the statement added. It also warned of “strict action” against students allegedly involved in misconduct during the visit.

Student Leaders Clash

DUSU President Ronak Khatri, affiliated with Congress’s student wing NSUI, defended the move. He countered that there was “no rule” requiring him to seek prior permission to host a private guest within his office. “Let it be clearly said this visit was conducted peacefully and solely within the premises of the DUSU Office... There exists no rule, academic or legal, that compels the President of DUSU to seek prior permission for hosting a private or informal guest interaction,” Khatri said, as quoted by PTI.

He also criticised the university’s response as “politically motivated” and accused the administration of undermining student autonomy.

Meanwhile, the RSS-backed Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which holds several key DUSU posts, accused Gandhi of staging a political photo-op. “Turning up uninvited, silencing elected voices and treating a student union office like a private drawing room is not leadership, it’s theatre,” the ABVP said in a statement.

DUSU Secretary Mitravinda Karanwal, aligned with ABVP, alleged that she was denied entry during the event due to “VVIP protocol,” adding she was later allowed in only after “lengthy negotiation.”

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