Kozhikode: The confrontation between the NIT authorities (National Institute of Technology) and the various student organizations continues unabated with the SFI, the student wing of the CPI(M) holding a massive protest towards the campus in Kozhikode after the college authorities slapped a huge fine of Rs 33 lakh on five students who led a protest against imposition of night curfew on the campus in March.
A show-cause notice was issued on Thursday to the students in order to claim the loss suffered by the institute due to students’ protests. Authorities say that due to the protest none of the staffs were able to enter the college
In the protests that took place today, hundreds of SFI students marched towards the college with placards demanding the decision to be revoked. Confrontation between the students and police led to a policemen injured. The confrontation took place after the students tried to enter the campus and were stopped by the police.
As per the college circular each student who took part in the protest is supposed to pay Rs 6, 61, 155. Vyshakh, Premkumar, Kailash Nath, Irshad Ibrahim, Adarsh and Ben Thomas are the students who need to pay the penalty.
“The college is trying to impose rules that don’t exist in any universities or colleges. We cannot tolerate such decisions. They are trying to curb the rights of the students to protest”, said Abin Thomas, one of the students who took part in the protest.
The NIT-C administration has given the students a seven-day window to respond to the penalty notice, emphasising that the fines were intended to compensate for the perceived losses incurred due to the protest.
“We have decided to take legal recourse before responding to the show-cause notice of the registrar. They are trying to pressurize the students”, said Adarsh, one of the students who was fined.
The discontentment began after a circular issued on March 20 by Dean GK Rajanikant which introduced new curfew regulations on the campus. As per the circular, students were required to return to their hostels by midnight, and the campus canteen was to be closed at 11pm instead of the 24-hour service provided earlier. The administration cited safety concerns and the negative impact of late-night activities on students’ health and academic performance as reasons for introducing the new rules.
However, the imposition of night curfew triggered unrest among the students.
The confrontation between the NIT authorities (National Institute of Technology) and the various student organizations continues unabated with the SFI, the student wing of the CPI(M) holding a massive protest towards the campus in Kozhikode Kerala States News India: Top News India, States News, States News Headlines, Online State News India, State Politics news
