'Water cut, food denied': Hisar varsity students shoot off letter to NHRC
Rohtak, June 28 -- Students of Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU), Hisar, on Friday approached the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), alleging that university authorities cut off water supply on Thursday and denied them access to food.
They further claimed that the administration has been calling the parents of protesting students, urging them to take their wards home if they want a "good future".
"Even police officials have visited the homes of several students, pressuring their parents to intervene and call them back. They were told their children may not be allowed to complete their degrees if they continue protesting. While hostel services have traditionally remained open for MSc and PhD scholars, this time the authorities have shut both the mess and the library," the students said.
At a press briefing on Friday evening, a group of protesting students said they had met the newly appointed director of students' welfare, SK Pahuja, on Saturday morning to raise their concerns. "Pahuja told us to initiate dialogue with the government and said he had no authority to reopen the mess," they said.
"The Haryana government panel, along with chief minister Nayab Singh Saini, publicly claimed that all our demands were accepted. We want the CM to clarify which demands have actually been met. Apart from appointing a new director of students' welfare, none of our key demands were fulfilled. On education minister Mahipal Dhanda's assurance, we told the media that the government had agreed, but we were betrayed. Since then, the crackdown has only intensified, and the government is blaming us for not ending the protest," the students added.
In the evening, Jannayak Janata Party's (JJP) youth wing state president Digvijay Chautala joined the protest and led a march with the students. He, along with several male students, confronted university security officials and demanded that the hostel gates be opened for the female students.
Chautala assured the students of his full support, saying, "I will stand by you like an elder brother. If anyone tries to pressure you, my doors are always open. You are fighting for your rights; all we can do is support you. These university authorities are weak-stand your ground and they will give in. Sometimes I wonder how such people sleep peacefully after committing such atrocities against the youth, who are the future of this country."
The students also alleged that despite an earlier assurance from the government to reschedule semester exams, the university released results just three days after conducting them. They claimed that over 80% of protesting students were marked as failed on the results' portal. A local court in Hisar rejected the bail plea of assistant professor Radhe Shyam, who was arrested for allegedly resorting to lathi-charge on the protesters outside vice-chancellor BR Kamboj's residence on June 10. He along with seven others was booked in connection with lathi-charge on students....
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