Fifty-one-year-old Varun Arya along with his wife and students of Aravali Institute of Management in Rajasthan has been fasting at Jantar Mantar here since Wednesday to save the institute from closure.

Mr. Arya, who runs the institute, is awaiting conversion of the land, on which a permanent campus is to be built, for use from agricultural to educational purposes. The institute is at present operating from rented buildings and “faces closure by July unless it moves to a permanent location”, says Mr. Arya.

Mr. Arya, who has been trying to get the Rajasthan Government to convert the land use, claims that he has not succeeded as he is unwilling to pay a “bribe”. Efforts frustrated, Mr. Arya decided to fast at Jantar Mantar in a bid to “bring the national spotlight on the issue”. The institute is under the Marwar Education Foundation. An IIT-Delhi and IIM-Ahmedabad graduate, Mr. Arya, who belongs to Rajasthan, said he was invited by the State Government to do something for Rajasthan. “I quit my comfortable job and returned to Rajasthan to build an educational institute. I purchased a barren piece of land since there were insufficient funds,” said Mr. Arya, adding that he had transformed the barren land completely by adding several lakes and trees.

“For conversion, I paid the necessary charges but still the government did not convert the land. There have been attempts to arm-twist me and unsavoury tactics have also been used,” he said.

Over 2,000 individuals, including IIM and IIT alumni, have signed a petition asking for conversion of the land.