HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said Friday that a University Grants Commission’s communication asking varsities to celebrate anniversary of surgical strikes is “patriotism not politics”, and it is not compulsory for institutes to organise it.

With opposition leaders accusing the government of politicising surgical strikes, Javadekar, a senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, rejected their criticism as “absolutely ridiculous and false”.

He told reporters that the ruling BJP differed with the Congress as it only gave advise to institutes to follow a programme while the Congress made following its decisions compulsory when it was in power.

An advisory not a direction has been issued to universities, he said.