Inmates of the men’s and women’s hostels at the Cochin University of Science and Technology main campus here gheraoed the Vice Chancellor on Tuesday alleging that the authorities were denying them an opportunity to stay in the hostels. The varsity authorities had asked the existing inmates of the women’s hostel ‘Aiswarya’ to shift to ‘Anaswara’ while those at the men’s hostel ‘Sanathana’ were asked to move to ‘Siberia’ to accommodate the first year students.
They had also found that the hostels were occupied by many, who were not eligible to get admission. But the inmates refused to vacate the existing hostels and demanded that they should be allowed to continue. The Vice Chancellor left her office by around 8 p.m. even as the protesters continued their sit-in at the administrative building.
Earlier, members of the Cochin University Employees Association staged a protest in front of the office of the Vice Chancellor after she allegedly refused to permit an employee, who had gone on leave, to join service. The employee was later allowed to join service while the varsity authorities clarified that they had only tried to check an unhealthy practice by some employees, who go on leave when shifted to sections where they did not want to join.
