The decision of the University of Delhi (DU) to issue a strict letter to students and staff not to join protests against the Chief Justice of India (CJP) at Jantar Mantar has been a matter of intense discussion in the educational field. Administration has clearly stated that joining so-called “unauthorised” gathering can bring very adverse legal outcomes, to say the least, students can find their university careers and even career in other field jeopardized.
The letter that spread rapidly on social networking platforms made it clear that all Jantar Mantar related protests are governed by orders of the Supreme Court of India. University authorities said that unlawful assemblies could result in direct legal action by the police forces. “This kind of involvement has also got the potential to seriously endanger a student’s own safety and their academic performance could seriously be damaged and their career paths affected” warned the university in its X (former Twitter) post. It also mentioned that getting booked by the police or the creation of any sort of legal history could really jeopardize one’s reputation at college and even their future job opportunities.
“University of Delhi warns students, faculty against attending Jantar Mantar protests, ” India Today, July 28, 2022. “DU issues strict advisory against Jantar Mantar protest, ” Education Today, July 28, 2022. “University of Delhi advises students and teachers not attending protests at Jantar Mantar, ” Deccan Herald, July 28, 2022. University of Delhi, “University of Delhi warns students, faculty against attending Jantar Mantar protests, ” University of Delhi 2022 July. University of Delhi, has also issued this advisory about the Jantar Mantar demonstrations, the latter of which have been escalating in Delhi. CJP, who recently led the protests at Jantar Mantar, was joined by students who demanded an investigation into the allegations of irregularities and paper leaks in the last couple of competitive exams like the NEET-UG. Per the sources, the movement has been turning more and more political and the environment has also been changing from time to time.
The legal proceedings were another threat apart from the university warnings. Besides, the administration pointed out the problem of misinformation being rampant . The authorities pointed towards an alarming increase of fake news, media alterations and misleading information online which were allegedly aimed at causing emotional and tension responses among the young ones. Finally, they advised the students to double-check every piece of information before reacting or publishing content on social media, while keeping in mind that their main responsibility is their education.
But the advice, the critics said, doesn’t go much further than the people who gave it to the student body. The DU administration is accused by politicians, activists and students of trying to silence free speech under one pretext or another. Some politicians and civil society members have strongly criticized the DU’s administration for its stance and posed a simple but very serious question about it: how come a flagship Indian educational institution has decided to threaten students of having their careers “destroyed” so that they refrain from showing solidarity, in a peaceful manner, with a matter of national concern?
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Delhi University isn’t the only institution to have issued such notice. The DU circular is a follow-up to the controversy which broke off at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee at this time of the week. The institute has even threatened its students and teachers with disciplinary action to prevent them showing “sympathy for political movements” or criticizing public issues on social media without getting clearance first. Although IIT-Roorkee later explained that the letter was only a reminder of a few behavioral guidelines, In reality it came just a few hours before students launched a massive national protest was quite controversial. Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) too recently asked its community members to stay away from the protests.
As another year is approaching, the relationship between campuses and protest groups remains one of heated argument. While universities insist that students are being warned so that they comply with conduct codes and stay protected from risks, protest organisations say that warnings of this kind just amount to a subtle strategy of keeping a lid on youth’s demands. The question how students will manage their academic pursuits and their democratic voice at the same time through peaceful protest has not been answered yet in a satisfactory manner.
