CHENNAI: Students across the city observed protests on Wednesday against the Centre’s Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the brutal violence unleashed on students at the Jamia Milia Islamia University. The sit-in protest by 20 students at the Madras University, which had been going on for three days, came to an end on Wednesday night after police whisked away the protestors from the campus and dropped them off near the Triplicane Police Station.
Earlier in the day, four students who took part in the protest at the Central Polytechnic in Taramani were charged and arrested by the police. More colleges joined the protest on Wednesday: Madras University, IIT-Madras, MCC, Pachaiyappa’s College, AM Jain College, Presidency College, New College, and Quaid-E-Millath among others. Days scholars were prevented from entering the Madras University campus on Wednesday.
Informal communication had been sent to hostel students to vacate their rooms by Wednesday evening. The only students present at the campus through the day were the 20 protestors, who were later evicted in the night. Though the varsity was scheduled to go on Christmas vacation only from Monday, officials announced holidays from Wednesday, owing to the protests.
This has sent students, particularly those from other states into panic, as they scramble to find tickets to their hometown. “They have been careful not to issue any circular asking us to leave the campus. All instructions have been given verbally. Our wardens have been continuously insisting for us to leave the hostel,” said a post-graduate student from the Chepauk campus.
Students, particularly from Kerala and other south Indian states, find it further difficult to find train and bus tickets owing to the Sabarimala season. The available bus tickets too are very expensive, they rued. Speaking to Express, V Duraisamy, Vice Chancellor of the varsity, said that the hostels will continue to function but classes will not be held until the start of the next semester.
Students, however, claim they are being ‘shooed off’ from the hostel. Kaarthikeyan VV, the student who was detained by the cops on Tuesday, said: “We weren’t physically attacked or harassed. But in the noon, we were nabbed for wanting to know reasons from the police who prevented the woman students of TISS from protesting at the Marina beach road. So, we were taken to Triplicane station first. After a short enquiry, at around 2 pm, we were taken to Mylapore police station.”
Students demanded the varsity not to close down the hostel and allow students to peacefully protest on campus. Meanwhile, Makkal Needhi Maiam leader and actor Kamal Haasan visited the protest at University of Madras on Wednesday evening, expressing his solidarity with the students.
Speaking to the students, he said, “It isn’t a help that I am here but I feel it’s my responsibility to support the students. By preventing such protests, the governments are trying to make students refugees in their campus, just like they refuse rights to the refugees in CAA.” In his inability to exercise any power regarding the protest, Kamal Haasan expressed his full solidarity with the students.