Allahabad University Students Still in Jail for Protesting Against Orders of Vacating Hostels for Summer Break

For the last 20 days, Allahabad University’s 11 students are languishing behind bars with after being booked under several serious charges,  including Section 307, for protesting against the university’s orders to vacate the hostels.

On Tuesday, June 5, a row was triggered over an order to vacate hostels for the summer break at Allahabad University. Students were given a week’s time to collect their belongings and vacate the premises.

The notice to vacate the hostels turned out violent with protesters allegedly resorting to stone pelting and setting a UPSRTC workshop bus, a motorcycle and a police vehicle ablaze. Allahabad University Students’ union president Awanish Yadav, vice-president Chandrashekhar Chaudhury, Chatrasabha’s Avinash Vidhyarthi and Uday Pratap were beaten and arrested during the protests.

Though this incident took place 20 days ago, the students are still behind the bars. They have been accused under false criminal charges and have been locked up in different jails.

Speaking to Newsclick, Akhilesh Gupta, a student and the Samajwadi Party student wing president of Allahabad University said, "The freedom of students is increasingly coming under attack in Yogi Adityanath’s regime. If the administration really wanted to vacate the hostels why didn't they ask us when our exams were ending? Why do this in June when almost all students are busy studying for the competitive exams."

He further added that it was really pathetic that all the students were sent to different jails as earlier they were only sent to Naini central jail. The Yogi government is so eager to crackdown the freedom of students.

"Everything is happening in university except education. Under the vice-chancellor Rattan Lal Hangloo, university ranking has slipped from 68 to 148", Akhilesh added.

"I would describe this situation as an undeclared emergency. More than anything, the government is scared of the students and their unity. This shows how fragile the state has become,” Richa Singh, former Student Union President of Allahabad University told NewsCcick.

She further added that AU has seen lots of movements and protests, but after 2015 a new trend, of suppressing the voice of students and to break their movements, have been started by the saffron government.

In all the previous movements, whenever an arrest took place, the students were sent only to Naini Central Jail in Allahabad. But this time, to refrain the students from getting bail, all the 11 students were sent to Chitrakoot jail, Kaushambi jail, Jaunpur jail and Mirzapur jail strategically, said the former president of AU.

Meanwhile accusing the University’s selection committee, Richa alleged that in the 11 colleges that are affiliated to AU, 36 assistant professor positions have been filled considering all the relatives and kins of the University administration and faculty members.

Showing a categorically callous attitude, the university admin has remained silent over the non-recruitment of 400 faculty positions in various departments, unavailability of a canteen, lack of hostels and a good number of books that were missing from the library. The university's administration has made it quite clear that it is joining hands with the district administration which will ruin the students’ careers, told Richa to Newsclick.