All 67 Kashmiri students of Swami Vivekananda Subharti University, suspended after 10 of them allegedly raised pro-Pakistan slogans following a cricket match in March, have been taken back, courtesy efforts put in by Vice-Chancellor Manzoor Ahmed.
The students allegedly raised the slogans after Pakistan won a cricket match against India on March 2. Other students objected to it, and the violence that followed led to damage to property.
“The university immediately suspended the students and sent them to Delhi as a preventive action … ,” Mr. Ahmed, a police officer-turned-academic, said in an interview to The Hindu on Thursday.
A committee of academics has found that the students have raised the slogans. “Though [what they did was] highly objectionable, these boys too deserved a sympathetic approach and counselling, as all 10 were recipients of a scholarship introduced by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as an initiative to promote higher education among Kashmiri youths outside their State,” Mr. Ahmed said. The youngsters could be given a chance and moulded to serve the national interests, he added.
The students had sought migration certificates mid-session and would have lost a year.
“To prevent this, we invited them and all but the 10 facing charges started returning. The 10 students were also counselled and have returned. They have all been provided with hostel facilities to prepare for the exams. Once the exams are over, they are free to go anywhere and we will help them seek admission in good universities without the anti-national stigma,” Mr. Ahmed said.Senior Superintendent of Police Omkar Singh said that investigations were in progress into the anti-India activity of the students A senior Intelligence officer felt that new Prime Minister Narendra Modi was likely to take a soft stand in the case.
