Over 40 students from the University of Delhi (DU) were allegedly detained by the police on Friday, January 20, who were staging a demonstration outside the Hansraj College campus, said a students' organisation representative. They were protesting against the "ban" on non-vegetarian food.
Several protestors gathered outside the college to protest against the ban on non-vegetarian food and alleged that the college denied entry to them and locked the gates. There was no immediate response from the police, stated a report by PTI.
On Wednesday, January 18, the Hansraj College unit of the Students' Federation of India (SFI) called for a protest against the sudden "discontinuation" of non-vegetarian food at the institution. SFI activist Sama said, "We began our protest peacefully. However, the college administration did not let us in. They have shut all gates and no officials are coming out to talk to us. We wish to submit a memorandum but they are not allowing us entry."
After the college reopened in February last year, post the pandemic, the management stopped serving non-veg food in the hostel and canteen, said the students. There have also been instances when the college management has confiscated eggs from the students who brought them to the hostel, alleged the SFI. The student group also said that the majority of students are against the ban and are looking at this as an attempt to establish cultural hegemony hence, the students are protesting.
Despite facing widespread criticism, Principal of Hansraj College Rama Sharma refused to withdraw the order and asserted that the constituent college follows Arya Samaj's philosophy.
Speaking to PTI, Sharma has also claimed that 90% of the students are vegetarian and they had earlier protested over non-veg food being served in the hostel. "We are not going to withdraw the notice regarding non-veg food. It is an Arya Samaj college. We have our philosophy and that is why we won't serve non-veg food. We conduct 'havan' regularly. We follow our rules. It is written in the hostel prospectus that non-veg food will not be served in the hostel," she had said, stated the PTI report.
