New Delhi (PTI): For six student activists sitting on an indefinite hunger strike at Delhi's Jantar Mantar, the protest is not only about the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan but also about what they describe as a deeper crisis in the country's education system -- from paper leaks and examination uncertainty to rising fees and shrinking public education spaces.
Sitting on a separate stage at the protest venue, away from the main platform, the six students associated with the All India Students' Association (AISA) entered the fourth day of their indefinite fast on Wednesday.
The students on hunger strike are Neha, AISA All India President and a PhD scholar at Jawaharlal Nehru University; Danish, JNUSU Joint Secretary; Manish, AISA Uttar Pradesh President and PhD scholar at Allahabad University; Deepak Kumar Verma, AISA Delhi University Vice President; Hrishikesh, President of Barak Hostel, JNU; and Aameen, former CC member of AUD Students Council and a PhD scholar at Ambedkar University Delhi.
AISA stated that JNUSU Joint Secretary Danish's blood sugar level had dropped to 61 mg/dL, while Aameen and Deepak Kumar Verma were advised by doctors to stop fasting due to health concerns. Nevertheless, the students have chosen to continue their hunger strike.
For Neha, who is pursuing a PhD in the School of Arts and Aesthetics at JNU, the decision to join the hunger strike came from a belief that students had been fighting these issues long before the current protest.
"Sonam Wangchuk sir was on a hunger strike with two issues: Ladakh and Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation. But our struggle for Pradhan's resignation has not started today. We have been raising these issues since 2021, when he became education minister and the series of paper leaks began," she said.
Neha, who grew up in military cantonments due to her father's service in the Army, told PTI that entering university exposed her to inequalities she had not previously encountered.
"Politics gave words to experiences that we thought were individual to us. It made us realise that many things we considered personal were actually part of a larger system," she said.
She emphasised that today's students are striving to protect opportunities created by previous generations.
"When higher education was being dismantled step by step, when education was being made a commodity and a privilege for a few, we were standing and fighting with whatever we had," she told PTI.
Hrishikesh, a PhD scholar in Physics at JNU and president of Barak Hostel, said his own experience as a student helped him understand the pressure faced by young people preparing for competitive examinations.
Coming from Assam's Bajali district, he studied at Delhi University before pursuing higher education at JNU.
"Students prepare for years. If something goes wrong in an exam, their entire future is affected," he told PTI, adding that paper leaks, technical problems and irregularities create immense mental pressure among students.
He also highlighted the impact of funding cuts on university campuses, pointing out issues in his hostel. "There is no mess in our hostel because there is no fund to hire mess workers. Even in a central university like JNU, there is a shortage of basic facilities," he said.
Aameen, a PhD scholar in Urban Studies at Ambedkar University Delhi, told PTI that the education crisis was linked to a wider anxiety among young people over employment and their future.
Originally from Ludhiana, Punjab, Aameen became involved in student politics during his undergraduate years at Khalsa College, Delhi University, after witnessing student struggles for basic facilities, including hostel accommodation.
He said that young people were trying to find ways to deal with growing uncertainty. "Even if you have relative privilege, you cannot escape the systemic problems. Students from different backgrounds are facing this pressure," he said.
Describing student suicides as a sign of deeper institutional failures, he told PTI, "It is not just about individual struggles. There is a larger system that is putting pressure on students."
Manish, a PhD scholar at Allahabad University and AISA Uttar Pradesh President, said he decided to continue the hunger strike because he believed students could not wait for more tragedies.
"Dozens of students have lost their lives, and the system has pushed them towards that situation. We cannot allow more students to suffer. That is why we are on an indefinite hunger strike," he told PTI.
Manish, who hails from Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh, mentioned the personal costs of his activism. He alleged that he faced suspensions during his PhD and sought legal recourse against them.
Despite his family's concerns about his hunger strike, he remained determined.
"My family was also worried. They did not want me to sit without eating or drinking. My mother, grandmother and partner were all concerned. But if I don't do this, then what will I do?" he said.
He added that despite the pressure, he continued because he believed students needed to speak up. "If we don't speak today, then in the future, more such incidents will continue," he said.
The youngest among the six, 21-year-old Deepak Kumar Verma, is pursuing a graduation in Economics from Delhi University. He said his concerns went beyond examination irregularities, including the larger direction of education policy.
"The education system has become hollow. Universities are being privatised, and education is becoming inaccessible," he told PTI.
Deepak said he had not even informed his parents about his hunger strike because they were not active on social media.
"My parents don't use Instagram. They do not know that I am sitting here on hunger strike," he said, adding that he planned to tell them after some time.
Despite the difficulties of the fast, he said meeting people at the protest venue had strengthened his resolve.
"I have met people from different places who are not even students but have come to support us. Some people have left their jobs because they believe something needs to be done for the future generation," he said.
Danish, a JNU student and JNUSU Joint Secretary, said the protest was about accountability in a democracy. "We live in a democratic country. The people sitting in power should have accountability and responsibility," she said.
She said repeated examination failures had affected students across the country. "It is not only about paper leaks. Public education itself is being weakened. Funds are being cut, fees are increasing, and education is being made inaccessible," she told PTI.
Danish said the demand for the education minister's resignation was linked to the question of responsibility. "If a minister is accountable, then taking responsibility should be the first step towards improvement," she said.
The six students said their hunger strike was a continuation of earlier student movements and that they intended to continue until their concerns were addressed.
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This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.