Since July 12, 2021, DU students have been protesting against the administration, demanding a fee waiver for non-tuition fees which cover water, electricity, fests, and other miscellaneous services that have not been utilized by students during the pandemic.
On July 2, Aftab Alam, DUSU’s vice-presidential candidate (2019-2020), sent a letter to the vice-chancellor, chancellor, dean of welfare, and the visitor of DU. However, he didn’t receive any response, despite stating that he, along with other students, would be holding a protest if they did not hear back within a week.
Hence, on July 12, dozens of DU students gathered outside the central library, following all COVID-19 guidelines, after intimating the SHO of Maurice Nagar police station.
Alam, who is leading the protest, said, “On the first day, 15-20 of us observed a satyagraha protest at art faculty. Some 70-80 men in civil clothes and hidden faces started approaching us. Our phones were broken, we were verbally abused, and thrashed repeatedly. A DU officer started abusing us and took away our belongings. They were suppressing students’ voices.”
The protesting students, on the other hand, didn’t budge and demanded to meet the vice-chancellor. However, they were re-directed to the dean of students’ welfare who, after making them wait for an hour, said that he couldn’t help them. The protestors were asked to meet the college’s dean, who also didn’t respond.
“If the VC or dean of welfare won’t help, then who would? Who would listen to our voices?” Alam asks.
On July 16, students took printouts of the fee structure and burnt them as a symbolic form of protest, after which FIRs were lodged against three of them, including Alam.
Most of the college facilities have been unused since March 2020.
The All India Students’ Association (AISA) was surveyed to empirically verify the above statement. AISA collected responses from over 500-700 students which would now be shown to the university administration. When this reporter contacted AISA secretary Ritwik Raj, he talked about the systemic fee hike during the pandemic.
Most of the college facilities have been unused since March 2020.
The All India Students’ Association (AISA) was surveyed to empirically verify the above statement. AISA collected responses from over 500-700 students which would now be shown to the university administration. When this reporter contacted AISA secretary Ritwik Raj, he talked about the systemic fee hike during the pandemic.
The survey reads, “The libraries of most colleges are closed, physical access to campus is curbed and even the digital classes have been irregular and inaccessible. At this time, AISA believes that extorting the fees from students is unjust.”
In addition to the non-tuition fees, several students are also paying for their hostel facilities, PGs, or flats in Delhi despite staying at their respective homes.
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While there has been no response from the administration yet, students are planning a hunger strike in the coming days. Some students have also met MLAs from Delhi such as Dilip Pandey and Atishi, and have contacted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy CM Manish Sisodia and expressed their concerns.
Source : www.thewire.in
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