It wasn’t too long ago that newspapers in Coimbatore were filled with details about UGC-directed Karunya University (Karunya Institute Of Science and Technology, Coimbatore). It was reported that the university was going to discontinue its off-campus centres and courses that were being run without approval.
It is again in news because of a major protest being held inside the campus by the students against a sudden fee hike by the administration.
As of April 12, 2018, a group of first and second-year students gathered in front of the administrative building for a peaceful protest and were later joined by the third and final year students. The student are mainly demanding that the administration work with them and bring an end to these forced rules.
Classes of the first and second year were suspended in the morning while the rest of the classes were suspended by noon and all the students were ordered to vacate the hostel. All the gates were blocked by the students to prevent the entry of media and police inside the campus. The protest, which was initially peaceful became agitated when one of the staff members tried to drive his vehicle out of the campus and injured a student who was blocking the gates.
The students have announced that the protest will not be called off until their demands are met by the management.
While the strike has continued for more than 12 hours, the management has not accepted any demands and discussion is said to be taking place. The management thinks students as the puppets who act according to their play.
Sources suggest that the protest was raised to a level that students of 2nd years including girls are treated with lathi charge. Female protesters have reportedly been admitted with some serious injury. They are being told to vacate their hostel rooms for 2 weeks. All because they raised their voice against the bureaucracy of the management.
Making the students evacuate the hostel premises at this time of night exposes their political trick not to affect the admission process that is to start next week.