The left-inclined JNU Students Union has called for a boycott of the convocation event scheduled on 8th August. According to reports, the JNUSU has issued a statement calling for the boycott claiming that the new vice chancellor of JNU has been ‘curbing their democratic rights’. The convocation is being held after a long gap of 46 years.
According to reports, the JNUSU has asked to join another event organised by them where former faculty members like Harbans Mukhia, Anand Kumar and leftist leader Kavita Krishnan are invited. The JNUSU has reportedly claimed in a statement, “For the last two and half years, we have witnessed the systematic destruction of our campus led by Vice Chancellor M Jagdeesh Kumar. The VC and his political masters, through their anti-student, anti-social justice policies like research seat-cut, scuttling reservations, fee-hikes, victimisations and targetting of student activists through fines and punishments, have tried their best to demolish JNU and all that it stands for.”
The Students Union has reportedly called the convocation event a ‘photo-op’ in the name of degree distribution. The statement further included that they have earned their degrees through their efforts and commitment of the teachers. The statement reportedly reads, “We would like to say it loud and clear Mr VC, we owe our degrees to the democratic culture of JNU and the destroyer of JNU has no moral authority to distribute our degrees.”
The Students Union had reportedly boycotted the previous convocation of 1971 too. But they joined it after actor Balraj Sahni was invited.
Earlier, the JNUSU had criticised the decision of JNU administration to ask students to submit a proforma to be allowed to attend the convocation. The proforma required students to furnish their registration number, enrollment number, thesis title, Aadhar number, mobile number and address. JNU rector had stated that the students who do not have Aadhar can submit any other valid identification proof.
Earlier, the JNUSU had objected to the administration’s decision to make 75% attendance compulsory at the university. JNUSU had complained that the compulsory attendance norm is ‘going to curtail academic freedom and destroy JNU culture’. The student body was earlier also allegedly involved in vandalism and violence at a screening of a movie made on Love Jihad issue. They had allegedly beaten up the security staff and students at the event. The leftist controlled student body had earlier opposed to a course on Islamic Terrorism’ and called it grotesque islamophobia. The students union had been at loggerheads with the VC ever since he joined and had called him RSS agent. The JNUSU members had also allegedly manhandled the dean of the university when called into his office for discussion.
