In what may be an attempt to protect professors facing sexual harrassment allegation, JNU’s elderly students’ protests are proving to be instrumental in stalling the proceedings in the court by locking down the administrative building of the varsity, which has all of the documents related to the proceedings in sexual harassment case against two of its professors. Highlighting this, the Delhi High Court directed the police to ensure that JNU’s administrative building is not blocked by protesting students, and the protests are held beyond 100 meters from the building.
Failing to maintain law and order around the crucial administrative block, the JNU administration has moved to the Delhi High Court seeking contempt action against its students and the police for violating a previous court order barring protests within 100 metres of the university’s administrative block. The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), in its plea, has claimed that the students “grossly violated” the August 9, 2017, order of the high court by holding a protest within 100 metres of the administrative block and affecting its day-to-day working, which has been disrupted since October 28.
The court has directed the police to help the Jawaharlal Nehru University registrar and other officials function from their office. Justice Pratibha M Singh issued the directions after JNU Registrar Pramod Kumar expressed his inability to produce ICC findings and other related documents in a sexual harassment case against two varsity professors. The registrar told the court that the students’ protest had led to a complete lockdown of the administrative building, because of which he had been unable to access the files.
“In August 2017, the High Court had directed that no protest shall be undertaken by students within a 100-metre radius of the administrative block,” Justice Singh noted. “Considering this order is still in operation, all the authorities are obliged to enforce it in letter and spirit,” the court said.
Notably, JNU had been embroiled in controversy over the past few months as the university students had resorted to vandalism and hooliganism against the administration protesting against the proposed fee hike in hostels. The students even went to the extent of holding professors captive and even heckling female reporters as they protested against the fee hike. With stalling courts proceedings and flouting its order, JNU students have crossed the line, the Delhi police must ensure stern punishment for the students who are locking down the administrative building of the varsity. Delhi police must ensure implementation of the high court order even during the protests.
