Yogi meets RSS chief: UGC regulations, counter PDA plan on agenda?

Agenda of meeting not made public; it apparently revolved around BJP’s efforts to counter the PDA formulation of the SP and the UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026

LUCKNOW Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday met Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat in the backdrop of a socio-cultural debate over the UGC’s Equity Regulations. The latter was on a two-day visit to Lucknow as part of the RSS’s centenary year outreach.

The meeting was construed in political circles as “significant” as assembly polls are due in UP next year. (File Photo)

Adityanath reached Saraswati Shishu Mandir in Nirala Nagar around 8 pm to meet Bhagwat.

Though the agenda of the nearly 40-minute-long meeting between the two leaders was not made public, the interaction apparently revolved around the BJP’s efforts to counter the PDA formulation of the Samajwadi Party and the UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026, following nationwide controversy, among other issues, said sources.

It is speculated that the CM may have conveyed his concern to the RSS chief over the UGC regulations and its repercussions on the 2027 assembly polls for the party, if not addressed properly.

The Supreme Court had recently stayed the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) new set of rules aimed at promoting equality in higher education institutions (HEI)

With UP holding much importance for the BJP, more so after the party’s performance went down drastically in the state in 2024 general election, the meeting was construed in political circles as “significant” as assembly polls were due in UP next year.

Discussions were also held on the programmes and their outlines across the country in connection with the RSS’s centenary year celebrations.