Jamia students continue 16-day protest, demand definite date for union polls

Students protesting for the restoration of the Jamia Millia Islamia Students’ Union (JMISU) refused to call off their agitation on Tuesday, October 27, demanding a definite date for elections and a timeline for approving the union’s constitution.

The protest entered its 16th day despite the university’s decision to hold elections within 15 days of the constitution’s approval. Student union elections have not been held at the university since 2006.

The university issued an order on Monday revoking suspension and show-cause notices issued to students during the protest. It also announced a committee to investigate the conduct of security staff during the agitation.

However, students said the order failed to address their key demand for a fixed deadline to approve the constitution.

“Our first demand was that student union elections should be revived, and dates for polls be declared,” Rehan Khan, one of the students on an indefinite hunger strike, said on Monday.

The university also directed Khan to vacate the protest site immediately, warning of legal action if he failed to comply.

The order stated that the protesting students had agreed to issue a public apology at a press conference for defamatory statements and social media posts against the administration. It also directed them to remove such posts and said the protest would be called off.

On Monday, scuffles broke out between protesting students and paramilitary personnel as security was tightened on campus. Police prevented students from entering the university after classes across all courses were shifted online.

At a press conference organised by the Jamia Collective in Jamia Nagar on Monday, alumni, artists, lawyers, educationists and student representatives expressed solidarity with the protesters. Representatives of NSUI, AISF, SFI, AIDSO, AISA and DISHA called for dialogue and the restoration of democratic spaces on campus.

The university had earlier announced a committee to draft the JMISU constitution and said disciplinary action against students over protest-related issues would be reviewed.

Online classes will continue until November 8, after which the university will reassess the situation, according to a notice issued on Monday.