Apoorva M, a second-year LLM student from the South Asian University (SAU), Delhi, has been camping outside the campus for five days now. She was allegedly forced to evict her hostel on the night of February 25, Saturday, following an expulsion notice. Yesterday, February 28, in a video shared by the student, a group of women from the university can be seen removing her tent and trying to displace her.
A policeman also asked Apoorva to vacate the premises yesterday and warned her of the consequences if she didn't. After being evicted, the student claims that she has nowhere to go and has been demanding to be taken back. Another student, Procheta M was also served the expulsion notice, while two students were sent rustication letters. The action against these students stems from their involvement in protests for a hike in Master's degree stipends last year.
Many student communities have condemned the SAU administration's move, among which are the Students' Federation of India (SFI) and the All India Students' Association (AISA) from Delhi and ChintaBAR, an independent student body from IIT Madras. The Committee Against Arbitrary Expulsion And Rustication of SAU, Delhi Students (CAAER– SAU) is holding a press conference on the issue tomorrow, March 2, at the Press Club of India from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm.
"The press conference intends to bring media attention to the unprecedented situation at the South Asian University. The conference will be addressed by Aishe Ghosh, JNUSU (Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union) President and SFI-Delhi state president. Apoorva YK and Ihsan Ahmad, brother of Ammar Ahmad, will be among the other speakers," the press release from the organisation states.
"The protests for stipend increase and other demands began on 13th October 2022. On the 4th of November, the SAU administration expelled and rusticated several students, including Ammar Ahmad. Ammar was driven to the verge of suicide by the distress caused by his rustication. On 22nd November, Ahmad suffered a cardiac arrest and was rushed to the hospital. He also suffered from multiple seizures during the same time. Unfortunately, Ammar was left paralyzed after this," the document adds.
Apoorva and the other three students then demanded that the administration cover Ammar's hospital expenses. In January 2023, they were interrogated by a committee and sent show-cause notices, a month after which came the expulsion and rustication letters. Students claim that the place where Apoorva's tent has been shifted to now is unsafe.
