JNU fee hike protest: JNUSU reiterates students demands, says 'we are facing academic emergency...shameful that V-C continues to hide'

Amid continuing agitations by the students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) , the JNU Student’s Union (JNUSU) has released a statement condemning the  “unprovoked violence” by the Delhi Police on protesting students, as well as, the Vice-Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar’s refusal to meet the students. The statement also included a list of demands, including roll back of hostel rules on clothing, curfew timings and called for the resignation of the V-C. [caption id=“attachment_7633801” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  JNU Students’ Union organised a protest over different issues including fee hike, outside the university campus. ANI[/caption] The statement by recalling the day’s events, where students had protested outside the AICTE auditorium— where the the uiversity faculty and the HRD minister were attending the convocation— and the in New Delhi and saluted the “spirit of thousands of students who are resisting the fee hike and imposition of regressive and patriarchal rules in the name of hostel manual”. The statement stressed on the troubles that the students are facing, especially those from marginalised background, due to the “999 percent fee hike.” “Due to the 999 percent fee hike that is being imposed on us, the university today faces an unprecedented crisis, with an overwhelming number of its students facing a threat to their academic future. For a university where a majority of students come from the most marginalized backgrounds in this country, it no wonder that many of the degree receiving students participating in the convocation also joined the protest future,” the statement added. JNUSU also condemned the “unprovoked violence” unleashed on the students by the Delhi Police and appealed to the  Ministry of Human Resource Development to address their complaints. “We hope that instead of dilly-dallying and protecting the anti-student measures of the JNU administration, better sense will prevail over the MHRD and all these policies rolled back. We seek an immediate resolution on the part of the MHRD and the JNU administration on this matter.” The statement termed Kumar’s “refusal” to meet the students as shameful and called upon the university administration to fulfill the student’s demands, including rolling back the hostel rules and the fee hike.

“While the MHRD Minister met the Students Union, it is shameful that the VC continued to hide and refused to meet the students. It has become amply clear that M Jagadesh Kumar is unfit to carry out the functions of a VC. WE ARE FACING AN ACADEMIC EMERGENCY created by this administration and we will continue to protest for our right to education. We reiterate our clear demands: 1. The meeting on hostel rules be reconvened in the presence of student representatives and all regressive parts pertaining to clothing/timings/etc must be revoked. 2. The 999% fee hike from 2740 to 30100 annually must be rolled back immediately. 3. The JNU VC must be removed for his inability to carry out the role of a Vice Chancellor in any reasonable and democratic manner.”

The statement further said that the protests would continue as the fee hike constituted an attack on the students from “the poorest and most marginalized sections in this country”. “JNU remains a university which is still accessible to the poorest and most marginalized sections in this country and this present move is a brutal attack on not just current students but on all those students from such backgrounds who fight and aspire for higher education.This is why the protest will only intensity if the demands are not dealt with soon.” Earlier in the day, JNUSU office-bearers had met Union HRD minister Ramesh Pokhriyal who had assured them that their demands would be looked into. The students however demanded that they want to meet the VIce Chancellor. The  Jawaharlal Nehru Students’ Union (JNUSU) has been on strike for the past two weeks  against the “anti-student” policies of the varsity’s administration. The protest escalated on Monday morning as students attempted to break broke police barricades to protest outside the AICTE auditorium in New Delhi, where the varsity’s convocation was being held. Here is the full JNUSU statement