Students of the University of Hyderabad (UoH) have condemned the administration's move of removing their representation of students' union, teachers' associations, Chief Warden and Dean, Students Welfare (DSW) from the Gender Sensitisation Committee Against Sexual Harassments (GSCASH) and reducing the body to Internal Complaints Committee (ICC). Further, the members of the Students Federation of India (SFI) expressed concern that when diligent efforts have to be taken up when the campus has returned to regular functioning after two tears of the pandemic, the administration is becoming indifferent.
Speaking more on this, the General Secretary of the new students union which was elected in February, Kripa Maria said, "The previous student's union had gone for a protest in January 2023 and could successfully retain the students' union members after around 30 hours of continuous sit-in protest," as stated in a report by The New Indian Express.
"Despite the assurance, when the new ICC committee constitution order came post-union elections, the order was worded in a manner enabling the ICC committee to not include the union member in the hearings," she added. Moreover, a circular issued by SFI said, "In the context of multiplying the number of sexual offences post-pandemic, SFI and students' union have been demanding for a rigorous gender sensitisation across the departments."
Additionally, there has been an attempt to water down GSCASH in the past as well and student groups have fought against it. SFI and the student union have appealed to the student community to unite against the assault of GSCASH and the insensitivity of the administration, the circular added.
