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IIT students seek action against Dean over quota
Representatives of PIFort have lodged a police complaint against members of management, writes Bhuvan Bagga.
The quota controversy refuses to die down — at least in IIT Delhi. In the latest twist in the quota protests, representatives of the Pan IIT Foundation for Rural Development (PIFort) have lodged a police complaint against the Dean, Director and some senior members of the management for allegedly threatening students demonstrating peacefully against caste-based reservations.
The students said they would approach the judicial magistrate if no action is taken. The police confirmed that they had received the complaint, but said that no case had been registered so far.
The row erupted on Friday. “The students were sitting on a relay hunger strike since May 31 opposite the main building (in IIT) when Prof S M Ishtiaque, Dean of Students, IIT, came with the security officer and ten other men. He threatened them with dire consequences concerning their career and forcibly brought down the shamiana,” the students alleged.
They also alleged that many PhD students sitting on hunger strike for a fortnight were warned that they might not get their Phd degrees if they did not call off the protests.
Rubbishing the allegations, Prof Ishtiaque said, “It’s a campaign of misinformation launched by the students against us. The decision to remove the shamiana was taken by students themselves after their meeting last evening. They conveyed the decision to us, and we proceeded to remove the structure.”
PIFort president Omesh Saigal, however, called it a criminal conspiracy and said the Dean and Director should be punished.
“We sought legal advice and then presented the facts before the Hauz Khas police at 11 am today,” he said.
Praveen Kumar of PIFort said they have now planned meetings over the next couple of days in an attempt to bring faculty, students and the alumnus on the same platform. “It’s only after these meets that we will be able to chalk out our plans for intensified campaign over the coming days,” he said.
Meanwhile, a BTech student of IIT-D said they were feeling threatened by the management. “Though the Dean had called some students for a talk yesterday, none of them actually represent the entire protesting group,” the student added.
