The BJP has recruited 40 students from premier management, law and science institutes such as the IIMs, National Law School and Indian Institute of Science (IISc) to assist its Lok Sabha MPs with background research to enhance the quality of debates from the treasury benches in the first session of the 17 Lok Sabha.
Sources in the BJP said Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi has enrolled Think India, an initiative housed in the World Organisation of Students and Youth, an affiliate of the RSS’s student wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).
The parliamentary internship programme is called Sansadiya for which Think India invited applications from students in all premier management, law and science institutes in the country. Over 600 applications were received from students and professionals and the BJP has picked 40 interns among them who have been attached with different Lok Sabha MPs.
“I think the quality of debates has vastly improved with the interns assisting MPs with research on a wide variety of subjects,” said a BJP office-bearer.
According to a letter to Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi from Ganesh Turerao, National In-charge, Think India, the selected students are asked to assist the MPs in their parliamentary tasks through research.
“We at Think India attempt to bind students with an Indian nationalistic sting to harness this part of national treasure in furthering our aim of national reconstruction. Students from IISc, IIMB, NIMHANS and NLS joined together to create a joint forum for students from premier institutes of India in 2006. Today we have created a network of students which spans across all national institutes and universities. We have already offered internships to more than 2,000 students since 2015 through five different internship programmes,” Ganesh Turerao said in his letter to the Minister.
“We have formalised Sansadiya, India’s first parliamentary internship…The selected students will assist the MPs in their parliamentary tasks through research and other day-to-day functioning of the offices of the MPs,” he said,
