It has now been 36 days since Nadia, Anan, and Harsh—students from Dalit and Muslim backgrounds—were arbitrarily suspended by the university for speaking out against a ragging incident that led to a student attempting suicide. Instead of supporting the students, the administration punished them, sparking outrage across the campus.
Over the past month, peaceful protests have been met with administrative repression. Campus gates have been sealed, barricades erected, and heavy security deployed to suppress student mobilization. The administration has even issued notices banning protests near the admin block, effectively curtailing the fundamental rights to free assembly and expression on campus.
In response to this injustice, SFI approached the Delhi High Court, where the judge has so far expressed sympathy towards the students’ case. However, in the last two hearings, the university has intentionally delayed proceedings, claiming more time is needed to prepare their defense. These delays are putting the academic futures of the three suspended students in serious jeopardy.
In response, students at AUD have launched an indefinite strike, refusing to leave the protest site for the past 96 hours. Their demands are clear and just:
– Immediate revocation of the arbitrary suspensions of Anan, Harsh, and Nadia.
– Withdrawal of the undemocratic notice restricting protests and campus expression.
– Reopening of all campus gates and restoration of normal functioning hours.
– Resignation of the Proctor for their biased actions and failure to uphold student welfare.
With no response from the administration, the movement has now escalated into a hunger strike. Tonight marks the first night of the hunger strike, joined by Sharanya, Treasurer of the AUD Union, and Shefali, Secretary of SFI AUD. Both have pledged to neither eat nor drink water until the demands are met, and are spending the night on the campus roads alongside other students.
Disturbingly, instead of engaging with the students, the Proctor has instructed security not to allow basic supplies such as medicine and sanitary pads through the gates—putting the health and safety of protesting students, especially women, at direct risk.
This blatant disregard for student welfare, democratic rights, and due process paints a grim picture of the current state of governance at AUD. The administration’s silence in the face of peaceful protest—now turned into a hunger strike—only deepens the crisis. It is unconscionable that students fighting for justice are being met with barricades instead of dialogue, repression instead of resolution.
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