Sonam Wangchuk Blames Congress for India’s Education Woes

New Delhi, September 03: Education reformer and innovator Sonam Wangchuk has questioned the Congress party’s record on education, arguing that a political party that governed India for decades cannot escape responsibility for the weaknesses that continue to plague the country’s school system.

 

 

Wangchuk reportedly questioned why successive Congress governments, despite having long periods in power, failed to bring about fundamental improvements in government education. His remarks have gained attention amid his recent campaign on education-related issues and his criticism of the functioning of India’s examination system.

 

 

Wangchuk, who founded the Students’ Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL) in 1988, has spent decades working on alternative models of education and school reform. His experience includes working with government schools in Ladakh and advising on education policy.

 

 

 

His criticism is significant because Wangchuk has recently emerged as a prominent voice on education after leading a hunger strike in Delhi over alleged irregularities in the NEET-UG examination. His campaign eventually became part of a wider political controversy over examination reforms and accountability in the education system.

 

 

The remarks also put the Congress in an uncomfortable position. While the party has frequently attacked the Centre over education, Wangchuk’s argument raises a broader question: if India’s education system has serious structural weaknesses, how much responsibility lies with governments that ruled the country for several decades?