HYDERABAD: Protests rocked the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU) on Monday - a day after the police arrested two, including a student, for allegedly raping a 23-year-old PG student at the men’s hostel - against the varsity’s alleged gender segregation rule and the absence of a gender-sensitivity panel.
Students gathered outside the administration block raising slogans but they seemed wary of the measures the university might initiate in the wake of the girl’s rape. Though they called for gender sensitivity, some raised concerns over the absence of an elected students’ body. “In the absence of an elected body or students’ representatives on the proposed Gender Sensitisation Committee Against Sexual Harassment (GS-CASH), the university may take measures which may go against the interests of the students. The university should engage students in a dialogue and take their suggestions while framing rules,” said Rose Sebastian, a PhD student.
Some others expressed concerns ranging from punitive steps against dissenting students to real-time CCTV monitoring of their movements.
Some students led what they called the “Occupy Basheer Hostel” protest to “reclaim the space” after the university decided to restrict the entry of girls into the men’s hostel.
The Vice-Chancellor did not meet the students who wanted to submit a representation. The EFLU Teachers’ Association too stepped in, urging the university to constitute a fully functional GS-CASH to promote gender sensitivity on the campus.