BJP slams Ramesh for comments against IITs, IIMs

New Delhi, May 25: BJP on Tuesday, May 24 hit out at Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh for his comments against IITs and IIMs, insisting that several top honchos of Fortune 500 companies from these institutions proved their contribution in the field of education.

"A minister who is considered to have the image of a bright and well-educated politician has said IITs and IIMs are not producing high-quality professionals.... He has himself studied in an IIT. BJP wants to say categorically that it is proud of our IITs and IIMs," BJP spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy told reporters.

Ramesh, who did his BTech from IIT-Bombay in 1975 in Mechanical Engineering, on Monday said that Indian Institutes of Technology and Indian Institutes of Management had not made any great contribution to the field of education.

Rudy said these two institutions with branches across the country had produced several professionals of repute.

"There is hardly a Fortune 500 Company which is not headed by or has somebody in a senior position who is a former IITian or an IIM pass-out," Rudy said.

He maintained that the list of Padma awardees in the country also consisted of several alumni of IITs and IIMs.

Taking a dig at Ramesh, Rudy said, "We cannot have world-class institutions unless we have world class ministers."

BJP also raked up an earlier controversy raised by Ramesh and asked him to come clean on it.

"Ramesh had earlier accused his ministerial colleagues of putting pressure on him to get their work done. We had asked him for names of these ministers. The matter was later sent to the Privileges Committee of the Rajya Sabha and is still pending there," Rudy said.

PTI