New Delhi, March 19 -- The Congress on Thursday opposed the proposed Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill, 2025, alleging it amounts to "constitutional overreach" and could "compromise" the academic and institutional autonomy of Institutes of National Importance (INIs), which include the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), and National Institutes of Technology (NITs), among others.

The VBSA Bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha in December 15 2025 and referred to a Joint Parliamentary Committee a day later, seeks to replace the UGC, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE). It provides for the repeal of the UGC Act, 1956, t...