After general body meeting, JNU students decide to continue protests, skip exams

The JNU General Body Meeting resolved to intensify the ongoing strike and boycott all academic activities. This will also include the examinations, scheduled to begin from December 12. The GBM that began on the night of December 4, concluded in the early morning on December 5.

"The UGBM resolves to intensify the thirty-six day-long massive struggle against the IHA manual, through complete non-cooperation with the JNU administration and complete academic shutdown including the boycott of activities like submissions, presentations, examinations and synopsis submissions," reads the resolution. "It is necessary to boycott the exams. This will make our message loud and clear," says Vishnu Prasad, an SIS councillor. "We also want to sustain the pressure that was built up throughout these days," he adds.

However, he also raised concerns over convincing the common students to boycott their exams. "This will be a challenge. Things will turn difficult from December 12 for obvious reasons," says Vishnu. Almost 8,000 students were part of the GBM. However, no member of the ABVP was present.

The GBM also decided to demand that the MHRD and the President of India relieve the Vice-Chancellor Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar of his duties, "owing to his utter incompetence in dealing with the acute crisis in JNU and proactively destroying the democratic ethos." It also decided to bring the karamchari, staff, teachers' associations together to consolidate the fight.

It also condemns the IHA meeting held on October 28 and called for its reconvening in a democratic way, making the students a part of the decision-making process.