NEW DELHI: In what was clearly a decision taken at the top,
the police was let loose on the students protesting the return of Vice
Chancellor Appa Rao Podile under whose watch scholar Rohith Vemula had been
compelled to kill himself. The VC of the central university had been moved out
for a short while, and now been brought back in by the government sparking off
protests across the campus. Two consecutive days of a brutal lathi charge on
the students left several injured, and one student in ICU where he was taken
unconscious. About 30 students were arrested after being beaten by the cops
inside the campus -- at the time of writing, the arrested students and staff
are being held at undisclosed locations. About 44 students were treated for
injuries at the University health centre, including more serious injuries such
as fractures and head injuries.
Please Watch:
Police Brutality in University of Hyderabad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y71ir0W6H0w
Police Brutality in University of Hyderabad- Part 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuprGfr7d7Q
Police Brutality in University of Hyderabad- Part 3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6HuODU3C2U
The authorities converted the University into a war zone,
with stringent restrictions imposed on not just food, but also water and
electricity. Internet access, State Bank of Hyderabad debit cards were
restricted and the food mess ordered shut. Movement was virtually prohibited
with the media and visitors not being allowed into the campus. The students
were left at the mercy of the police, that cracked down on the protesters,
thrashing them mercilessly and arresting many who were taken away to
undisclosed locations.
At the time of writing, PhD scholar Uday Bhanu who was
reportedly attacked by the the police for cooking food for students on campus
was admitted unconscious into ICU. The Citizen was informed that Bhanu is
admitted at Pranam Hospital, Hyderabad and his condition is serious. His only
crime was that he was trying to ensure that the students got a meal, as this
too seemed to have been prohibited by the authorities.
Students have been protesting the return of the VC, who is
currently facing a judicial probe over the death of PhD scholar Rohith Vemula,
who committed suicide in January this year. Vemula’s suicide note highlighted
the reality of caste discrimination on campus, as Vemula -- along with four
other Dalit scholars -- had been expelled from the University hostels. The
central government came under widespread criticism, as it was revealed that the
University’s decision to act against the students came after HRD Minister
Smriti Irani wrote a series of letters to the Vice Chancellor demanding action.
Irani’s own intervention was based on a letter by Union Minister of State for
Labour Bandaru Dattatraya in August 2015, that called the University “a den of
casteist, extremist and anti-national politics.”
Vemula’s suicide spiralled into a national students and
dalit movement, with #JusticeForRohith becoming the rallying cry. The
interference of the central government was criticised at all levels, with the
recent Jawaharlal Nehru University controversy -- where three students were
arrested on the charges of ‘sedition’ -- acquiring a similar context.
Given the immediate context, the VC’s return to the campus
led to widespread protests, with the police quickly moving in after the VC’s
residence on campus was ransacked. Students and staff members were picked up
and taken to an undisclosed location, with protesters criticizing the
high-handedness.
The administration then clamped down cutting off
electricity, internet access and food supplies, and restricting entry into the
University campus. The following letter was sent to the Commissioner of Police,
prior to the attack on Bhanu and others.
Videos from the confrontation between students and police
show students being lathi charged and badly beaten.
Meanwhile, JNU Student Union President Kanhaiya Kumar -- who
had arrived in Hyderabad -- was not allowed to enter the campus. Despite the
crackdown, protests continue -- peacefully -- at the university. At the time of
writing, Rohith Vemula's mother joined a sit-in protest outside the Hyderabad
University main gate.
If you’re at Hyderabad University and have updates, please
email us at info.vidhyalya@gmail.com
News Source : THE CITIZEN BUREAU
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