Three days after the Panjab University campus witnessed a violent clash between students and the police amid a protest against fee hike, the students are in no mood to relent, with many of them continuing their protest on Friday.
However, differences cropped up among members of the Joint Student Action Committee (JSAC), which was formed by student unions to press for a rollback. Students owing allegiance to the National Students Union of India, who broke away from the JSAC, continued to sit on a relay fast demanding a rollback.
Relay fast
Student leader Manoj Lubana said: “NSUI has separated from the JSAC owing to differences in ideology and methodology, which made the protest a political gimmick.”
“It’s the eleventh day of the relay fast,” said Mr. Lubana, adding that the NSUI would soon meet Punjab Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh and Governor V.P. Singh Badnore and urge them to find plausible solutions and get proper funding for the University.
The JSAC mainly includes Panjab University Students Union (PUSU), National Students Union of India (NSUI), the Students Front and Students Organisation of India (SOI). The Students For Society (SFS) and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP) are not part of the JSAC.
The elected Panjab University Students Council, meanwhile, intends to resume its agitation in the coming days, if the fee hike is not rolled back.
‘Revoke police cases’
“We had a meeting with the university administration today [Friday] as well on the issue. Also, we have asked the authorities to withdraw the cases filed against innocent students following the clash with police,” said Nishant Kaushal, president of the Panjab University Campus Students Council. Mr. Kaushal said the stone-throwing episode on the campus was the handiwork of “outsiders”.
The students have been protesting against the significant hike in tuition fee announced by the PU Senate last month for the 2017-18 academic year.
