Nishikant Khajuria/ Adil Lateef
JAMMU/ SRINAGAR, Apr 8: As the agitating non-local students of National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar continued their protest for the fourth consecutive day seeking shifting of the college campus to some safer place, the Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh rushed back from New Delhi to Srinagar and held a meeting with some students, though talks remained inconclusive.
Accompanied by the Minister for Education Naeem Akhtar, the DyCM held meeting with around a dozen non-local students at his official residence in the presence of Chairman NIT Srinagar, members of visiting MHRD team, senior Police officers and others.
During the marathon meeting, which lasted for more than five hours, the students reiterated all their demands, including action against the cops responsible for the lathicharge on Tuesday and withdrawal of the FIRs registered against them.
“We listened to all their demands and sought to clarify that registration of FIR was a routine process and moreover it was not against anyone but open. After the Magisterial inquiry, action will be taken against those responsible for the incident and there would be no victimization of the students while JKP will not enter the campus,” he told the Excelsior and assured personal as well as academic security of the NIT students.
Stating that maximum demands have already been agreed upon, the Deputy CM, however, made it clear to the students that shifting of the NIT from Srinagar was impossible and not even thinkable. “They (students) seemed to be satisfied though there was no agreement on the same,” the DyCM added and informed that he may meet more students tomorrow.
On the other hand, the agitating non-local students, both male and females, continued their protest in support of their demands, notwithstanding an appeal by the NIT administration for restoration of normalcy and resuming their academics.
While the girl students held day-long protest dharna near the office of Director NIT and opposite the campus main gate, the boys assembled in common room of their hostel and then marched towards the hostel gate in the form of a procession.
Despite intermittent rains, the girl students continued their protest dharna throughout the day while boys, who were agitating near the hostel gate, suspended their protest for a brief period during Friday prayer in the afternoon but resumed the strike after 3 p.m. The girls as well as boys kept protesting till last reports came in and they even skipped their dinner.
Amidst raising of slogans like ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ and seeking justice, they were demanding evacuation of the students, shifting of the College to safer place, action against some roguish faculty members as well as the J&K Policemen who were responsible for brutal lathicharge on them.
The agitating students once again made it clear that their struggle was not against locals but the mischievous elements in the college administration that were misleading the Government and higher authorities.
“Please don’t’ make it a religious issue. We are fighting against our administration, which claims that situation on the campus has normalized. Only 10 percent of students are going to the class and 90 percent are boycotting. Is this condition called normal,” they asked in a post on social media. The protesting students also lamented that no one from the college administration as well as Government visited them today.
As the situation continued to be tense, the Chairman of Board of Governors of NIT Srinagar, M I Zarabi, appealed the agitating students to restore normalcy on the campus.
“I sincerely appeal to all our students to help restore normalcy, pursue their academic career in right earnest and help the institute scale great heights,” says Dr M Zarabi in his appeal, issued today.
Registrar of the NIT Srinagar, FA Mir, in a notification issued, said that that the College Administration has been approached by some injured students who wanted to return to their homes. “Arrangements are being made for them,” he informed and said that remaining students, who want to go, may also submit their details so that necessary action may be taken.
Pertinent to mention that the NIT administration, through a notification on April 6, had asked the students, who had demanded to go to their homes, to provide them their names along with the contact number for necessary arrangements in this regard.
Sources said that majority of non-local students have expressed their desire to go to the home and have submitted their names and respective contact numbers to the college administration.
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