Tension prevailed in and around the Hyderabad Central University as students in large numbers are turning up to the University, responding to a call given by the Joint Action Committee for Social Justice. The students from other universities and also from other states are reaching the University Campus.
The Students have been seeking immediate arrest and trial of the culprits of Rohith’s suicide and removal of Vice Chancellor Prof Appa Rao among others. Police barricades have been erected and vehicle checkings are underway on all roads leading to the university as precautionary measure.
The Joint Action Committee for Social Justice, University of Hyderabad, planned a huge rally “Chalo HCU — Justice for Rohith Vemula,” comprising students from Central Universities across India. The rally is part of JAC’s decision to intensify students’ agitation to pile pressure on the Centre to accept their five-point charter of demands, mainly removal of Prof Appa Rao from UoH vice-chancellor’s post and punish culprits booked under SC/ST Atrocities Act Including Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya.
Students from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Bihar, West Bengal, Punjab, Haryana and a few other states expressed their rage and solidarity to the students’ movement for social justice.
High tension prevailed at varsity as protest marches are underway inside the campus and students from other states who tried to barge in have been stopped at the university gate by the police.
Addressing the gathering at the university gate, JAC members Prabhakar, Prashanth, Venkatesh Chouhan and others demanded police should go back. “Police should not be allowed to enter autonomous institutions,” JAC members said.
Earlier, a fresh set of seven students started an indefinite hunger strike after the earlier group of seven students was admitted to hospital after three days of their protest fast on Saturday.
The seven students who began the indefinite hunger strike are Agnes Amala T. of PhD human rights; K.P. Pramila of PhD gender studies; Devi Prasad of PhD sociology, Mubasheer Hameed of MA sociology, Hari Krishna of MA economics, Prathik Bovmi of MA English and Kiran Kumar Gowd of MPhil political science.
On Saturday, the police had shifted seven students after health deteriorated after three days fast. Two of them were hospitalised while five others were treated at the UoH health centre.
Cyberabad police deployed four platoons of armed forces outside the university. About 150 law and order police including one DCP, one additional DCP, three ACPs, 15 inspectors and 15 sub-inspectors were deployed inside the campus. Water cannons and fire tenders were also placed in the campus.
Meanwhile, Dr Ambedkar’s grandson and former MP Prakash Ambedkar, UGC former Chairman Prof Thorat are among who visited the agitating students to express solidarity.