Sanjauli college row: Reinstate expelled students, demands human rights body

People’s Union for Civil Liberties yesterday staged a sit-in protest at Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, against the alleged illegal expulsion of six students from the Centre of Excellence, Government Post Graduate College, Sanjauli, and demanded that the students be immediately reinstated.

Former SFI HPU campus president Falma Chauhan claimed that six students were illegally expelled from the college by the principal after they staged protests on the various student-related issues.

This was done to put an end to their movement, she added. She said the report of a girl student being molested at the college was shameful.

“A group of students approached the principal demanding an impartial investigation into the incident, they also called for the formation of a gender-sensitive committee at the college, in line with Supreme Court guidelines, to prevent such incidents in the future. However, the college administration not only ignored their demands but also treated the students harshly and even resorted to physical violence against them,” said Chauhan.

“As the issue escalated, the college administration retaliated by expelling six students illegally. Despite more than a month having passed, the expulsion has not been revoked, thus depriving the students of their right to education,” she added.

Chauhan criticised the “authoritarian” attitude of the college administration, which, she claimed, had jeopardised the future of the expelled students.

However, the administration remains unresponsive to the concerns raised, she claimed.

She said a delegation of the association met the Vice-Chancellor of the university, urging him to intervene into the matter. However, the university did not seem to be concerned at all, she added.

The association warned the college as well as the university authorities that it would intensify its movement if the expelled students were not reinstated.