BackIvy League universities condemn police violence against students
The ripple effect of protests on Indian campuses saw reactions from top educational institutions in the worldStudents and scholars at Oxford University staged a protest march to India House in London against the CAA and the police action on students
PremiumStudents and faculty from several institutions, including Ivy League universities, came out in support of students at several varsities where protests continued against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and against the police assault on protesters.
The ripple effect of protests on Indian campuses saw reactions from top educational institutions in the world, including Oxford, Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where scholars staged demonstrations against the police assault on students of Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).
“We, students, alumni and the wider community, at universities across the United States of America, condemn the brutal police violence unleashed against students at Jamia Millia Islamia university and at Aligarh Muslim University…as a gross violation of human rights under the Constitution of India and International Human Rights Law. We express full solidarity with students across universities in India who are peacefully protesting against the recent passing of the unconstitutional and discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act," said a release by more than 400 students, scholars, and faculty of Ivy League institutes.
“We demand that student protesters be allowed to continue to protest peacefully in exercise of their fundamental rights under the Indian Constitution without any threat of use of force by the police or other law enforcement agencies," they said in an open letter.
Students and scholars at Oxford University staged a protest march to India House in London against the CAA and the police action on students. Demonstrations were held by students at MIT where a silent march was taken out with participants holding posters saying “Merry Crisis and Happy New Fear", PTI reported.
In India, students of Ferguson College in Pune, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, the Savitribai Phule Pune University, privately run Ashoka University and Azim Premzi University spoke in solidarity with campus agitations against CAA.
Students of Ferguson College protested inside the campus as Pune Police did not permit them to take out a protest march in the city. Students of Ashoka University in Haryana and Azim Premji University in Karnata expressed their reservation against CAA and the action against students. “We firmly believe that CAA is an act that violates constitutional principles of equality and secularism and opposes it. We wholeheartedly support the dissent expressed by students of the universities," said a student of Ashoka University.
On Tuesday, the Delhi Police said they have arrested 10 people related to the Sunday arson in and around Jamia but none of them are students. Meanwhile, Waseem A. Khan, chief proctor of Jamia, termed a statement by the solicitor general as baseless. “This is baseless allegation imposed by the solicitor general of India that the chief proctor permitted Delhi Police inside the Jamia Milia Islamia campus on 15 December," Khan said.
At the Maulana Azad National Urdu University in Hyderabad, teachers and employees’ associations on Tuesday extended support to protesting students, saying they will continue to raise their voices against CAA and the implementation of the National Register of Citizens. University authorities postponed year-end semester exams amid the crisis. The Central University of Tamil Nadu has announced a vacation against the backdrop of the unrest.
prashant.n@livemint.com
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!
