Subscription 
Protest, protest everywhere!- 28-Aug-2015
Is this August a season of protests in Indian universities? In this month alone, Indian universities have witnessed a spate of student protests for several assorted reasons, hogging the news headlines.
Of those protests is the ongoing agitation thats rocking one of the oldest varsities of the country, the Presidency University. Presidency University vice-chancellor Anuradha Lohia, on Thursday, warned that she would dissolve the seven-member committee constituted to look into the grievances of the students by noon on Friday if the students are not willing to cooperate with its members. On the other hand, the students submitted a memorandum to the university authorities on Thursday demanding that they are not going to listen to the members of the committee unless the university authorities publish a white paper on the reason behind so many teachers and officials leaving the university. They also demanded the relieving orders of the professors who are associated with the university but drawing salaries from state government colleges. They also demanded that the university authorities should issue a statement on why the students were assaulted by the police on August 21 when the chief minister was invited to the convocation ceremony.
Earlier this week, facing widespread criticism for the gherao of the vice-chancellor and their unruly protests in the campus, the students of Presidency University offered apologies. Amid the agitation, a meritorious student who roamed around the university wearing a bra became an instant sensation. What is being termed as an "indecent protest" led to a police raid on the students home.
In an unprecedented protest on August 21, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was shown black flag while she attended the convocation ceremony at the University. As Presidency University students are gearing up for prolonged agitation, protests in social media are also gaining momentum. Alumni of Presidency University across the world are demanding an explanation against brutal attacks perpetrated on students on August 21.
This week also witnessed students protest in the Manonmnaiam Sundaranar University, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu. A group of girl students submitted a petition to Collector M Karunakaran, demanding action against a faculty member who is facing sexual harassment charges. During the same time, the political science classes were suspended in Madras University. Issuing a circular on Wednesday suspending classes indefinitely for the Department of Political Science and Public Administration, the Madras University authorities asked the department students to vacate the premises.
As many as 10 postgraduate students and scholars of the department were suspended on Tuesday evening for protesting on the campus for the last 13 days, demanding the reinstatement of their professor Ramu Manivannan as head of the department (in charge). Students agitated against the demotion of Professor Manivannan, who was the acting head of this department. He was reportedly asked to take administrative action against the students who took part in the liquor prohibition protests in Tamil Nadu. When he refused, he was allegedly demoted. It is likely that the protests will continue till Manivannan is reinstated as the HoD.
Recently, following students protest, Pondicherry University vice-chancellor Chandra Krishnamurthy came under fire. Union Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry has issued a showcause notice to Krishnamurthy, asking her to explain why she should not be dismissed over charges of misdemeanour and plagiarism. The notice was served to the vice-chancellor with the approval of President Pranab Mukherjee after a three member-committee, set up by the University Grants Commission (UGC), indicted her for plagiarism and misdemeanour, including submission of false information in her bio-data, official sources told the media. With issuing of showcause notice, the Ministry has effectively initiated process to remove Krishnamurthy from the post of Pondicherry Universitys vice-chancellor. However, the President, who happens to be the visitor of the university, will take the final call in the matter based on the recommendation of the Ministry.
Amid charges of "administrative chaos" and "human rights violation", the HRD Ministry had asked Krishnamoorthy to go on leave from August 13. Chief Secretary to the Puducherry government, Manoj Parida, was quoted as saying that the ministry has directed the vice-chancellor to go on leave pending inquiry into the allegations made against her. Students had been on strike since July 27 to press their charter of demands, including removal of the vice-chancellor for alleged administrative chaos and violation of human rights.
Recent expulsion of 72 Indian Institute of Technology-Roorkee students led to protests. IIT-R, however, took back all the 72 students it had expelled on the grounds of poor performance.
This week also witnessed protest in a deemed university in Coimbatore. Over 1,000 students and teaching and non-teaching staff of Avinashilingam University on Tuesday staged a sit-in protest against the varsity management for allegedly violating the UGC norms.
Meanwhile, intellectuals expressed support for the students protesting at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, and lashed out against what they called "political appointments of less qualified people in key positions at prestigious educational institutions". This is the first collective response from the Assam intelligentsia over the agitation raging at the Pune institution against the appointment of small-time actor Gajendra Chauhan as FTII chairman.
On Tuesday, the girls of the Mass Communication Department of the St Xaviers College in Kolkata showed their disagreement to a diktat barring girls from wearing shorts at a youth festival on the Mumbai campus, by coming to college wearing saris. Earlier this month, peeved over inordinate delay in results declaration and undervaluation, over 50 students staged protests in front of the Nagpur University premises at Maharajbagh Square. Meanwhile, a group of students at Pachaiyappa's College in Chennai staged a protest on the college premises demanding release of 15 students who were arrested for attacking a Tasmac shop.
In yet another protest, the choice based credit system (CBCS) was opposed. Bolstered by the referendum where majority of the students from 18 of Delhi University colleges and Jamia Millia Islamia voted against CBCS, the Students' Federation of India is planning phased protest.
Protests were also witnessed in several colleges in Tamil Nadu as protests in favour of total prohibition gathered momentum. Though students have been stirring the nation this August with unforeseen number of protests, it is a good sign that the builders of the future are looking beyond their own interests. Several vice-chancellors and heads of institutions, however, are in the line of fire.
