All Bodo Students' Union stages a protest against the UGC policies, in Patna on Wednesday./ANI Photo
Protests against the new UGC rules intensified in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, with large-scale demonstrations reported from Deoria, an agitator writing a letter to the prime minister with his blood in Kaushambi, and a BJP functionary quitting his post in Raebareli.
The row erupted after the University Grants Commission (UGC) on January 13 notified the new regulations, making it mandatory for all higher education institutions to constitute equity committees comprising members from OBC, SC and ST communities to address complaints of discrimination and promote inclusion.
The move has drawn backlash from several quarters, with many claiming that the UGC Regulations 2026 could be misused to foment caste-based discontent and vitiate the academic environment.
In Deoria, thousands of people staged a sit-in on the district court premises, raising slogans against the Centre and the state government.
The demonstrators, who marched from the Subhash Chowk to the Collectorate, raised slogans outside the district magistrate's office and later blocked the road outside the district court, disrupting traffic for nearly an hour, officials said.
Members of the legal fraternity also extended support to the agitation, during which some protesters were seen sporting black armbands.
The district administration initially failed to clear the blockade as the protesters demanded that District Magistrate Divya Mittal first come to the site.
Mittal later reached the spot, accepted a memorandum and persuaded the protesters to clear the road. -- PTI
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