CHENNAI: Support for protests demanding cancellation of NEET, resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and condemning the police excess on protesting students and youth in Delhi continued to grow across Tamil Nadu on Thursday, with thousands of students extending solidarity and staging demonstrations across Chennai and other districts.
A total of 2,041 people participated in the protests across the state, of whom 408 were detained and let go later. At the CPI state office in T Nagar, hundreds of students from different colleges had gathered by Thursday evening. Second-rung leaders from several political parties and personalities from the Tamil film industry visited the venue to express support.
At Rajarathinam Stadium in Egmore, members of the Neelam Student Movement staged a protest. Filmmaker Pa Ranjith urged the state government to provide space for students to hold democratic protests if it opposed NEET and criticised the silence of Dalit ministers on issues affecting the community. Rapper Arivu said sustained public mobilisation was needed to reform the examination system.
Meanwhile, the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) and the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) announced statewide peaceful sit-in protests from Friday in solidarity with the students protesting in Delhi.
Addressing reporters at the Chennai Press Club, SFI state president S Mirudhula and DYFI state secretary S Karthick said they had sought police permission and urged the Chennai police to earmark suitable venues instead of arresting students participating in peaceful protests.
SFI state secretary T Samsheer Ahmed said the organisation’s national committee had called for a nationwide class boycott on Friday and an overnight protest under the slogan, “Stay Awake, Keep the Nation Awake.”
At IIT Madras, independent student body ChintaBAR alleged the institute denied permission to hold a peaceful gathering in solidarity with students protesting at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. The group also claimed it was asked to remove a video supporting Wangchuk.
Later on Thursday evening, the All India Youth Federation (AIYF) and the All India Students’ Federation (AISF) accused the Greater Chennai Police of intimidating anti-NEET protesters and alleged an AISF functionary was assaulted during the ongoing demonstration. They warned that continued police action could escalate the peaceful protest into a larger agitation.
In Tiruchy, DYFI and SFI members burnt Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in effigy near TVS Tollgate.
Extending his support, Makkal Needhi Maiam president Kamal Haasan urged climate activist Sonam Wangchuk to end his fast, saying the country would need his conscience in the days ahead.
Meanwhile, BJP members led by state president Nainar Nagendhran staged a protest in Chennai on Thursday, condemning the Congress and its leader Rahul Gandhi. Speaking to the media, Nainar said instead of going to the Parliament, Rahul Gandhi is hiding behind the cadre of CJP.
Though AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami did not express his views on the protests, the AIADMK IT wing, on its X handle, condemned the arrest of agitators in Tamil Nadu.
