Starving JNU, Silencing Dissent: The BJP-RSS Playbook to Privatise India’s Public Education
Since 2014, JNU has been under a systematic attack aimed at dismantling its public education model. Mamidala, followed by the Dhulipudi administration, walking on the BJP-RSS blueprint, have enforced fund cuts, fee hikes, and financial mismanagement while justifying these actions under the false pretense of a “fund crisis.”
When it comes to scholarships, academic facilities, infrastructure development, or any student demand, the VC’s response remains the same: “We have no funds.” But a closer look at JNU’s financial records over the past decade reveals a disturbing reality. JNU has been facing a real financial crisis, as the central government has systematically reduced its funding allocations. Despite rising inflation and increasing student needs, JNU’s funding has stagnated or declined in real terms, pushing the university into financial distress. While the BJP government redirects money away from the education sector, students left to struggle under the manufactured crisis of scarcity.
The data reveals a systematic choking of funds, worsened by inflation and negligent spending practices –
- An illusion of increasing funds
At first glance, JNU’s funding seems to have increased—from ₹249 crore in 2014-15 to ₹309 crore in 2023-24. However, this increase is misleading when viewed in the context of inflation. Between 2014 and 2024, inflation rose by 53.4%, yet JNU’s funding increased by only 24.48%. This means that, in real terms, government aid has failed to keep pace with rising costs, leading to an effective decline in available resources per student. The government presents these figures as proof of continued financial support, but in reality, the real value of funds has shrunk, limiting the university’s ability to maintain its academic and infrastructural standards.
The graph shows how JNU’s budget has changed over the years, comparing the Nominal Budget —the amount allocated each year—with the Inflation-Adjusted amount, which shows what that money is worth in 2014 terms after accounting for inflation.
While the Nominal Budget appears to increase over time, this does not mean JNU is receiving more resources. When adjusted for inflation, the real value of funding has declined, meaning JNU has less purchasing power than before. Inflation has increased over the years making education costs higher, but the funding has not increased proportionally.
Despite the illusion of rising budgets, JNU is actually receiving less money per student in real terms—leading to fund shortages, fee hikes, and cutbacks in facilities. The crisis is not just about fund mismanagement but about a systematic decline in per-student funding.
- Where is the money?
JNU’s financial records reveal a concerning pattern: the amount spent on academic expenses has plummeted drastically. In 2014-15, JNU spent 12% of total funds on academic expenses. By 2023-24, academic expenditure had been reduced to just 3.5% of institutional spending, reflecting the sharp decline in government support for academics.
These figures reveal a deliberate starvation of public education. Instead of increasing allocations to match inflation and expanding student needs, funding has either declined or stagnated in real terms. Essential academic resources—libraries, laboratories, scholarships, and faculty hiring—are being systematically underfunded, forcing students and researchers to bear the brunt of this crisis.
If funding per student is decreasing and academic expenditures are shrinking, then where is the major chunk of JNU’s funds being diverted? Is the administration channeling these funds into RSS-backed programs and government-led propaganda events? Are resources being used to finance extravagant events featuring right-wing ideologues like ISKCON instead of academic development? If the money isn’t being spent on students, faculty, or research, then who is benefiting from it?
- Systemic decline in per-student spending
The most alarming indicator of financial mismanagement is the steep decline in the money spent per student.
- In 2014-15, JNU spent ₹37,807 per student on academic and institutional expenses.
- By 2023-24, this figure had plummeted to ₹13,921, marking a 63% decrease in just nine years.
These figures demonstrate a consistent erosion of student support, making it clear that the university administration is not prioritizing education. Instead of increasing expenditure to match inflation and growing student needs, JNU has actively cut back on essential spending, leading to deteriorating academic resources, reduced scholarships, and a declining quality of education.
The slight rise in per-student expenditure is not due to increased funding but a drastic decline in student enrollment. In 2021-22, JNU had 9,977 students, which dropped to 9,515 in 2022-23 and further to 7,997 in 2023-24.
Defunding Public Education: A Deliberate Strategy of Class Warfare
Under the current BJP-led regime, this systematic underfunding of public education is not an unfortunate oversight but a calculated political strategy. It is evident that these fund cuts serve the dual purpose of consolidating capitalist interests and suppressing dissent.
The reduction in expenditure per student, the stagnation of real government aid, and the deliberate non-utilization of allocated funds all point to a larger agenda: the dismantling of spaces that nurture opposition to the ruling class.
The defunding of public universities creates a vacuum that private institutions fill, making quality education accessible only to the elite. This reinforces class divides, ensuring that the working class remains disenfranchised and incapable of challenging capitalist hegemony.
In contrast, corporate-funded private universities align themselves with capitalist interests, providing sanitised curriculums that serve corporate needs rather than critical consciousness. The BJP’s fund cuts are thus not merely budgetary decisions but acts of class warfare.
Starving Public Universities: A Deliberate Push Toward Privatisation
The defunding of JNU is not an exception; it is a blueprint for all public universities. We have seen similar patterns in Delhi University, Hyderabad Central University, and Jamia Millia Islamia, where central funding has been slashed and financial burdens have been shifted to students. The goal is clear—
- Reduce government spending on higher education: The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 explicitly promotes “self-financing” models.
- Push universities into financial crises: Cuts in grants force institutions to seek private funding, leading to a dependence on market forces.
- Justify massive fee hikes and privatization: The attempts at fee hike tries to normalise commercialised education.
- Make higher education inaccessible to Dalits, Bahujans, Adivasis, and working-class students: The goal is to recreate a Brahmanical order where education is reserved for the privileged few.
Privatization Over Public Good: The NEP’s Real Agenda
We all know that the BJP Government has introduced the New Education Policy (NEP), to exclude and close the gates of education for the vast majority of India’s poor and deprived students; weaken social justice and reservations; open the floodgates for privatised, commercialised education. NEP provides so – called “autonomy” to universities to start self – financing courses, to generate its own fund to hire faculty members from foreign institutions. Where is the money going to come from? Of course, from the pockets of students.
NEP is also a clear call for private enterprises to expand their “business” in higher education, easing regulations for private players. The premature ‘Institute of Eminence’ status for Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Institute contrasts with fund cuts at accessible universities like JNU/JMI/AMU. Simultaneously, foreign universities are invited, catering to elites paying lakhs per semester—exclusion masked as policy.
The JNU crisis transcends numbers—it threatens affordable, inclusive public education. Defunding reflects a broader agenda to dismantle universities, shift burdens to students, and reserve education for the privileged. If unchecked, institutions fostering critical thought will erode into elitist, corporate-serving enclaves. This fight isn’t merely about JNU—it’s resisting commodification and defending the right to knowledge for all.
