The Dr BR Ambedkar University Delhi (AUD) has issued an order asking a second-year MA student to pay a fine of Rs 5,000 for using "distasteful" language during the virtual convocation which was streamed live on YouTube. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal presided over the convocation.
During the convocation, students relentlessly commented against the changed reservation policy under which a student has to get get a caste certificate from Delhi to apply for under for a reserved seat. They also protested about the fee hike which allegedly forced marginalised students to give up their education because of financial issued during the lockdown.
But the student has denied having used any abusive or "distasteful" language in her comments and said that she only protested about the fee hike and the changes in the reservation policy at the Delhi government university. She, along with a few others had used the hashtag #AntiStudentKejriwal in their comments.
Neha, a second-year student of MA in Performance Studies, has also said that the order was factually incorrect as it says that she has admitted to have made comments and "did not feel guilty" about it. "I have not even been asked any such questions. They quoted some of the comments and asked me the reason behind them and I explained," said Neha. "At first I got a show cause notice and was asked to go for a one-on-one interaction. A few days later, I got a call from the Proctor's office asking my parents to join. I told them they don't live here in Delhi and it won't be possible for them to come," she added.
The Proctor's office then contacted her mother who called Neha, worried. "She knew about the protest but she was obviously worried," she said. "Later, they asked me to join a virtual meeting and I did. They quoted comments I had made and then asked me to explain why I wrote those. There were references to the deputation that visited Delhi Education Minister and Deputy CM Manish Sisodia in the comments and we had called the reservation policy casteist. They wanted me to explain and I obliged. But there was no mention of being guilty or whether I felt any guilt. I have asked them to show me the comments they might have found wrong but they did not reply to that. Even in the show cause notice I wasn't charged with any particular offence neither did it mention who had placed the complaint," she claimed.
The order also does not mention how Neha is supposed to pay the fee and she has decided to write to the university for further confirmation on the same. "I don't agree with their judgement because as it is, I don't really have the details of the inquiry," she added.
We tried contacting the Registrar's office but there was no response. Their comments will be added if and when they reply.
