Shimla: National Students Union of India (NSUI) quest to remove Sikandar Kumar as Vice-Chancellor of Himachal Pradesh University took a violent turn on Saturday when NSUI activists had a scuffle with police and Quick Reaction Team (QRT) at Himachal Pradesh University campus.
Several NSUI activists were arrested while some sustained injuries during the scuffle.
NSUI has been raising its voice against the Vice-Chancellor and has been demanding his immediate removal, took out a rally from Chaura Maidan, Shimla to the university.
After they reached university, they tried to meet the Vice-Chancellor at his office. However, they were stopped by police personnel. However, NSUI adamantly insisted to meet the Vice-Chancellor which ultimately led to a scuffle between the police and the activists.
NSUI State President Chhattar Singh has alleged that Sikandar Kumar has violated University (Conduct Rule 35.20) as he was active in state politics from 2016 to 2018. He was State President of BJP SC Morcha during this period while being the VC which is a complete violation of the university norms.
He said that there have been irregularities in recruitment in the university that has downgraded the reputation and academic quality of the university.
He further said that NSUI will intensity their movement and will not stop until their demands are met. He said that they will soon gherao Vidhan Sabha and Raj Bhawan if the state government fails to fulfil their demands.
The incident has garnered strong criticism from Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) President Kuldeep Rathore. He has demanded the government to take stern action against the guilty police personnel and an inquiry into this matter.
In a statement issued by him, Rathore said that in a democracy, it is students’ right to peacefully protest for the sake of their demands. Police cannot suppress the students’ movement through violence.
