Ifrah Mufti talks about the crucial issues of the varsity concerning the students, teachers and the campus with JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh. Excerpt
What are the student’s major concerns right now?
The major concerns inside campus have recently been that of the physical safety of students and also rising cases of theft besides security breaches where violence has been perpetrated and no justice yet has been served. Starting with Najeeb’s disappearance, the 5th January 2020 incident; rising cases of stalking, molestation, attempts to rape etc have become rampant.
How has the varsity responded?
The administration has been a mute spectator. The affected parties had to struggle in lodging police complaints and no support was extended. When students protested, it only released statements. They have in fact been curbing our rights instead of addressing the issues. With GSCASH being defunct, there is no mechanism to address such issues in a proper way.
Don’t protests have any effect on the administration?
Protests have been happening recently on the issues of campus safety. Despite having a woman VC, this institution, which was once known for its safe campus culture, is losing its essence. Students are disappointed and end up staging protests to express anger regarding the deterioration of safety.
Is the varsity grappling with scarcity of funds?
Yes. This has led to non-disbursement of salaries to the sanitation staff and security guards, scholarships for research scholars and MCM scholarships for students indicating how bad the situation is. After almost a year-long protest by JNUSU, the ministry released Rs 56 cr, but the condition of the infrastructure is deteriorating. Our library does not even have access to journals.