PUDUCHERRY: Police used mild force to disperse government school students who sat on a dharna in front of the Raj Nivas gates on Monday demanding 10 percent reservation for government school students in medical education and arrested five National Students Union of India (NSUI) office bearers who led the agitation.
The students gathered around Raj Nivas, broke the barricades and sat in front of the building to draw the attention of Lt Governor Kiran Bedi to their demand.
After the Tamil Nadu government had implemented 7.5 percent reservation for government school students in medical education, the Puducherry cabinet also took a decision to provide 10 percent reservation for government school students in medical education and sent the file to the Lt Governor for approval. However, the Lt Governor forwarded the file to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to take a decision. So far, the MHA has not granted approval.
Meanwhile, with time running out, the Lt Governor also ordered CENTAC to complete the medical admission process by December 31 as per a court order.
Protesting against the action of the Lt Governor and demanding that the central government give its approval for the file forthwith, the NSUI began an agitation two days ago. As part of its agitation, the NSUI functionaries along with 100 students from government schools came to Raj Nivas this afternoon.
The police were caught off guard as they had no information about the agitation and no police pickets were posted there. The students removed the barricade on one side and reached in front of the Raj Nivas. The police personnel on security duty at the Raj Nivas could not prevent them.
About fifty students sat in a dharna in front of the Raj Nivas raising slogans in support of their demands. Police personnel at the Raj Nivas erected the barricades again and prevented other students from reaching the spot.
The police force which arrived there tried to take the NSUI Puducherry President S Kalyanasundaram (27) and other functionaries into a police van. But the students surrounded the van to prevent it.
At this juncture, police resorted to a mild lathi charge to disperse the students and arrested Kalyanasundaram and NSUI office bearers D Tamilazhagan (24), P Bharat (20), K Shanmugham (21) and A Sayeed (25) under IPC Sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life), 186 (voluntary obstruction of public servant from discharging duty). They also removed the protesting students (all minors) in a van.