You may have thought that the most expensive Biryani served in India would have been at the Taj, but as always, JNU beats them all hollow. Four students have been fined Rs 28,000 for cooking and eating biryani near the Admin Block. Students at Jawaharlal Nehru University have had their share of fines, suspensions, FIRs and even police arrests, so they seem to be taking this new punishment in a lighter vein. Popular student activists on Facebook are asking if they would have been let off the hook if they had cooked Khichdi instead!
On Thursday evening, four students were sent notices from the office of the Chief Proctor, ''finding them guilty of being involved in cooking biryani and eating it thereafter with other students'' near the administrative block on campus. Amir Malik, Chepal Sherpa, Satarupa Chakraborty and Manish Kumar have each been fined Rs 6,000-10,000 for their actions. Incidentally, all of these students are actively involved in student politics on campus. Why can't they cook on campus? In August, the Delhi High Court had issued orders directing students to not hold any protests within 100 metres of the administration building. While it is unclear whether the the cooking fest was a form of protest or not, seems like the management is considering it one.
The Chief Proctor calls it an act that is " serious in nature, unbecoming of a JNU student and calls for strict disciplinary action". However, keeping the student's career prospects in mind, the Chief Proctor goes on to state that the students would be dealt with leniently. Just a 6000 rupees fine for each of the students to be paid up in ten days.
Being sent notices is a regular affair these days on campus, Satarupa Chakraborty, who is the the former General Secretary of the JNUSU even joked about how the "notice vending" machines should take a break. The students have been seeking a meeting with the University VC and since they weren't getting one, and so they decided to cook near the administrative block. A couple of days ago, the JNUTA found the JNU VC, Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar "unfit" to be in his position. The students and the VC have been at loggerheads for the last few years and the fire doesn't look like it'll die down anytime soon.
