DU's School of Open Learning files complaint against protesting students. Here's why  

"When they were stopped by the police personnel, they threatened the SOL staff and provoked other agitators to enter the premises of SOL building to disturb the public-dealing,” the principal said
Here's what happened | (Pic: Edexlive)
Here's what happened | (Pic: Edexlive)

The Principal of Delhi University's School of Open Learning (SOL) has filed a police complaint alleging that a few protesting students entered the building, misbehaved with female security guards and even manhandled the staff. On the other hand, the Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS) has accused authorities of not just attacking students but also fracturing the arm of one student. 

A senior police officer informed that complaints have been received from both parties and accordingly, the investigation is underway, as reported by PTI. 

As per a report in TNIE, students were protesting to demand hybrid mode of classes citing outstation hostellers who are stuck at home and upcoming and offline internal examinations. 

It was Principal Uma Shankar Pandey who claimed that students under the banner KYS held demonstrations at 11 am right in front of SOL's building at main gate number one. They blocked the road which disturbed traffic and SOL's student support services as well.

“When they were stopped by the police personnel, they threatened the SOL staff and provoked other agitators to enter the premises of SOL building to disturb the public-dealing,” he alleged in the complaint, as quoted in a report by PTI.

The agitators even managed to climb to the top of the main gate and chanted slogans against the college authority, the complaint said. Since they were not maintaining peace during the demonstrations, stern action needs to be initiated so that in the future, public dealing may not be disrupted, the complaint said.   

KYS, in turn, claimed that the SOL administration attacked two protestors. The protestors had stepped inside the SOL building on Friday, February 18, so that they can submit their memorandum which detailed the several issues that the students are facing, but the administration locked the gates and they were confined in the building, they said. 

“A group of about 20 SOL officials and the administration's henchmen confined the students, abused them and violently attacked the students in the office of the acting principal Uma Shankar Pandey in his presence as well as that of a police constable who accompanied the delegation," it said.

The group even alleged that a protestor was being treated at Hindu Rao Hospital because he had broken his arm. 

Secretary of Democratic Teachers' Front (DTF), Abha Dev Habib, condemned the attack on students and said that students' peaceful protest and the demands they kept forth cannot be handled in a manner like this. Habib even called the attack in the principal's office with the involvement of SOL officials "extremely unfortunate" and proceeded to demand an inquiry.

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