In a move that will undoubtedly stir controversy in the days that follow, the Modi government’s Human Resource Development Ministry has issued instructions to all higher educational institutions (HEIs) to “connect all the students’ Twitter/Facebook/Instagram accounts with the HEI’s Twitter/Facebook/Instagram accounts, as well as the MHRD’s Twitter/Facebook/Instagram accounts.”
Already, questions are being raised within the academic circuit, as to whether the HRD Ministry’s move is an attempt by the central government to track and police the social media accounts of students.
For example, Ayesha Kidwai, a professor at JNU, told The Quint, “This is ridiculous, and it is a clear attempt by the government at implementing surveillance on even the personal spaces of students.”
In a response to The Quint’s queries, the HRD Ministry has clarified that the move to connect students’ accounts will not be a compulsory one. The HRD Ministry stated, “It is not compulsory. They need not share if they don’t want to.”