New Delhi: After Delhi University on Tuesday, February 17, barred public meetings, processions and protests on campus for a month, several student and teachers’ groups demanded that the order be withdrawn, calling it unconstitutional and anti-student.
Students’ and teachers’ bodies said that the order stands in violation of constitutional rights and acts of violence against teachers, students and non-teaching staff by organised groups is being used by university administration to impose collective punishment on the entire democratic movement.
The Delhi Teachers’ Front (DTF) said the prohibitory order “is a draconian measure designed not to maintain peace, but to stifle legitimate democratic expression,” and argued that it contravenes Article 19 (Freedom of Speech and Expression) of the Constitution.
The National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) termed the move authoritarian in a statement. Its national president Varun Choudhary said the decision was a “calculated attempt by the government to crush the democratic spirit of campuses and silence SC, ST, and OBC students who are raising their voices for social justice and equitable implementation of UGC regulations”.
Left-backed student group Students’ Federation of India (SFI), Delhi State Committee, said in a statement, “If the university administration is genuinely concerned about maintaining peace and public order, it must act decisively against those who instigated and carried out acts of violence.”
Student group Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS) in a statement said it “condemns in the strongest terms the shameless notice” and alleged that the administration had cited “very vague and lame reasons” such as traffic disruption. It claimed the order “openly seeks to curb the fundamental right to hold peaceful protests and dissent” and demanded its immediate revocation.
Students said the campus had recently seen protests over UGC Equity Regulations and anti-discrimination mechanisms. Many expressed concern that the month-long ban would prevent them from gathering to raise academic and equity-related issues.
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