Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge has written to President Droupadi Murmu objecting to a report of Sainik Schools being privatised and that 62 per cent of the new Sainik Schools are owned by individuals & organizations belonging to the BJP-RSS-Sangh Parivar.

Kharge mentioned that presently there are 33 Sainik Schools in the country which were fully government funded institutions operated under the aegis of Sainik Schools Society (SSS), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Defence (MoD). However, according to the report based on an RTI reply, the Union Government is privatising these preparatory schools and signed 40 Memorandums of Understanding in 2021 to open 40 new schools under Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs).

The Congress leader claimed 62 per cent of those with whom the government signed the MoUs included a Chief Minister’s family, several MLAs, BJP office-bearers and RSS leaders.

“This is a blatant step to politicise the independent Sainik Schools a preparatory platform which plays a leading role in sending cadets for the National Defence Academy (NDA) and Indian Naval Academy,” Kharge said and accused the government of breaking the well enshrined convention of keeping the Armed Forces away from any partisan politics and its affiliate institutions away from shadows of varying political ideologies.

“Imparting ideologically slanted knowledge in such institutions shall not only destroy inclusiveness but also damage the national character of the Sainik Schools, by influencing their character through partisan religious/corporate/family/social/cultural credos,” the Congress chief stated in his letter to the President.

Therefore, in National Interest, Kharge said that his Party demands “the complete rollback of this privatisation policy and annulment of these MoUs, so that children studying at Armed Forces Schools retain desired character, vision and honour required for the service of the nation.”