The Osmania University campus, which remained relatively peaceful for more than two months, became surcharged on Monday when hundreds of students took out a procession demanding that the government withdraw all the cases registered against the agitating students.
Precipitating the situation was the firmness with which university administration turned down the demand for postponement of the MCA semester exams. Equally stubborn were the agitators that students boycotted the exams. According to university authorities, of the 8,125 students who were to take MCA final year semester exams in 49 centres in the twin cities, Ranga Reddy, Nalgonda, Medak, Mahabubnagar and Nizambad districts, only 565 appeared. The second year MCA exams will start from Tuesday. The confrontation between the university administration and the students is likely to continue, as students under the aegis of MCA OU Joint Action Committee decided to boycott the exam on Tuesday too.
The committee claimed it received representations from all the affiliated colleges extending support to their demand. The committee members led by OUJAC leaders' submitted representations to university Registrar Kishan Rao and Dean Laxmaiah requesting them to postpone exams.
“Mr. Rao and Mr. Laxmaiah told us that they would inform the matter to senior officials and take a decision later,” committee leader Feroz Khan said. But the JAC leaders said they would intensify the agitation, if the government failed to postpone exams. Right from morning, tension was building up on the campus as hundreds of students gathered in front of Arts College and took out a rally to the NCC gate, the Western end of the campus. Police were conspicuously absent near the Arts College, but were present in good numbers both at the NCC gate and near the police station. A confrontation appeared imminent at the NCC gate as students sat in a dharna for over two hours and the police putting up barbed wire fencing to prevent students from coming out of campus.
Vehicular traffic was not allowed to pass through the university campus and it was diverted through Adikmet.
For more than two hours city bus services were suspended on the university route as there were apprehensions that students might damage them. The stalemate ended nearly around 2 p.m. after the students dispersed on their own.
Back fasting MPs
The Telangana Students JAC expressed solidarity to Congress MPs, who were on indefinite fast at New MLA's quarters, demanding that the State government withdraw cases booked against agitating students. Plans have been chalked out to hold meeting with 500 students from all universities in Telangana on Thursday to discuss future course of action after Srikrishna Committee submits its report on December 31, said JAC spokesperson Kailash Netha here on Monday.
