PUDUCHERRY: Pondicherry University, a central university has barred students who participated in protests against fee hike and Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) from claiming the Post Graduate scholarships given to students on the basis of merit and merit cum means for each semester.
A circular issued by K Deven, Coordinator (Academics) on May 22 and posted in the University’s website restricts the award of scholarship to only those who have 70 per cent attendance and have not participated in any protest during the previous semester.
The Heads of departments have been directed to ensure that these conditions are fulfilled among the eligible students before sending the list of claims from students.
The order is applicable to students of 53 departments who were admitted for Integrated courses in 2014-19, 2015-2020, 2016-2021, 2017-2022 and 2018-2023 and two year Post Graduate courses in 2017-2019 and 2018-2020.
Most of the students had participated in protests against fee hike and Citizenship Amendment Act and now they are being denied scholarship.
It is anti-student and anti-constitutional decision by university to punish the students for demanding a campus inclusive of economically and socially weaker section, said Parichay Yadav, President of Pondicherry University students’ council.
The scholarships is given to meritorious students and students who participated in protests cannot be denied the scholarship.
The council in a representation to the University , through Dean of Students welfare maintained that it is the right of students to scholarships provided on basis of merit as well as constitutional right to protest peacefully . Since a lot of students are from economically weaker sections to depend on scholarships pay their semester fee. The University has targeted not only the constitutional right but also has displayed its anti-poor attitude. It is inhuman , said Yadav adding that the student council will move court challenging the order , if the order was not withdrawn immediately.