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‘Kajol level trolling, but…’: Priyanka Chaturvedi after Unacademy educator Karan Sangwan sacked
Unacademy co-founder Roman Saini announced the company was parting ways with Karan Sangwan, citing a breach of the “Code of Conduct.”
Priyanka Chaturvedi of the Shiv Sena (UBT) lashed out at edtech platform Unacademy for sacking one of its teachers Karan Sangwan describing the move as “shame” as his opinion would “positively influence young minds”.
Referring to Sangwan's comments – “vote for educated candidates and not for those who only change names” – Chaturvedi questioned how this opinion could be considered biased.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the Shiv Sena (UBT) MP wrote, “How does saying vote for literate politicians a biased opinion? Doesn’t that opinion positively influence young minds? Shame if merely expressing this view gets you to take someone’s job, Unacademy.”
Also Read | Row over Unacademy educator asking students to vote out politicians busy ‘changing names’
“Don’t understand why everyone felt Karan Sangwan, the professor’s opinion on educated leaders was about Mr. Supreme. Repeat of Kajol level trolling, but here it cost him his job,” she added.
Earlier on Wednesday, Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national chief Arvind Kejriwal also criticised the edtech platform's decision and supported Sangwan's comments, saying “People's representatives cannot be illiterate.”
“Is it a crime to appeal to educated people to vote? If someone is illiterate, personally I respect him. But people's representatives cannot be illiterate. This is the era of science and technology. Illiterate public representatives can never build the modern India of 21st century,” Kerjiwal wrote on X.
Sangwan's comments quickly went viral on social media, following which Unacademy co-founder Roman Saini announced that the company was parting ways with him, citing a breach of the “Code of Conduct.”
Karan Sangwan to discuss controversy on Friday
Karan Sangwan, meanwhile, announced that he would talk about the controversy on his YouTube channel on Friday (August 19). Sangwan, an LLM in criminal laws, was apparently discussing the latest bill tabled in the Lok Sabha by the Union government to replace the British-era IPC, CrPC, and Indian Evidence Act during a lecture. He was expressing his disappointment that all the notes he had prepared on criminal laws became worthless.
Following his comments, many accused Sangwan of “pushing political propaganda in the name of education.”
“Karan Sangwan an @unacademy faculty of Law is urging students not to vote for BJP again. Is this a revolution in Education Roman Saini talks about??” a user wrote on X.
Later,"#UninstallUnacademy" started trending on the microblogging site, with many users supporting his opinion on choosing educated political representatives.
What did Karan Sangwan say?
In a video clip, the educator can be heard saying, “Even I don't know whether to laugh or cry because I also have a lot of bare acts, caseloads, and notes that I had prepared. It is hard work for everyone. You also got a job at your hand.”
He further says, “But keep in mind one thing. Next time vote for someone who is well-educated so you don't have to go through this (ordeal) again. Ok?”
Sangwan adds, “Aise insaan ko chune jo padha likha ho, jo samajh sake cheezon ko. Sirf aise insaan ko na chune jinko sirf badalna aata ho, naam change karna aata ho (elect someone who is educated, who understands things. Don't elect someone who only knows changing names) Make your decision properly.”
