NIT students determined to show their strength on April 23 at Jantar Mantar
STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU/NEW DELHI: Outstation NIT Srinagar students on Thursday staged a protest demonstration outside the residence of Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani in support of their pending demands.
Now to generate more momentum to their protests, NIT students have started mobilising more support from their batch mates, currently visiting their homes after stepping out of the NIT Srinagar Campus.
All those students who are determined to take the fight to its logical conclusion on Thursday issued another passionate appeal to their batch mates and other senior students to join hands with them and visit the Dharna Sthal on April 23 for organising day long protests.
Referring to attempts being made by the NIT authorities, under pressure from MHRD, the students on their facebook page circulated an appeal, “Friends our actual demands are not considered yet and we are enjoying at our homes. We were beaten, our juniors were beaten and, we are enjoying at our homes. We were tortured, and we are enjoying at our homes. We were harassed, and we are enjoying at our homes. So, friends(boys and girls), we personally request you all to join us in Delhi on 23rd April, 2016. Only one day protest(come in the morning and leave in the evening) for yourself, your friends, your juniors who were beaten during lathi-charge and for their future. And above all our country. Let’s show them our actual strength”.
They listed the demands which were yet to be fulfilled. These included permanent deployment of the CRPF with powers in the campus (not under state administration); reshuffling of college administration immediately and restructuring of NIT Srinagar administration by introducing cadre system; Administration (both teaching and Non-teaching staff) should consist of 50 percent quota of J&K State personnel and 50 percent quota from other States of India; immediate formation of Students’ Council on the lines of top NITs/IITs; online Special Grievance Redressal Mechanism (SGRM) exclusively for NIT Srinagar directly monitored by the MHRD and should not consist of any faculty member; action against JK Police and administration involved in the incident; action against those faculty members who are harassing students academically (list already with the MHRD) and lastly, Tiranga in institute campus.
The protesting students also tried to raise passion among the students staying away from the protest demonstration asking them to explain how can we go back and face the same administration again.
“Are you sure, they are not going to harass you”?
If we returned empty handed they will feel more confident.
“Was removing Kawsar Majid from the post of hostel warden and Abdul Liman from the newly formed grievance committee our main objective?
Do we really want fruit center before the above demands are met?, the students wrote on their social page.