JNU students boycott exams as agitation continues

New Delhi, Dec 12 (IANS) Staying true to their word, agitating Jawaharlal Nehru University students on Thursday boycotted their exams as most of the exams halls saw empty desks.The School of Sanskrit and Indic Studies (SSIS) was an exception though."Only students from the SSIS sat for examinations that too only about 50 students. We respect the decision and have no issues with it," former JNU Students Union president N. Sai Balaji told IANS.JNU administration had earlier announced that failing in exams or not sitting in exams might lead to cancellation of studentship for the individual, however the majority of students gave examinations a miss."Entire campus was locked down, and as we had promised until the demands are met, no one will write exams," Balaji added.A hostel draft manual, introduced by the varsity, has become a bone of contention between students and varsity administration since October 28 when the administration didn't allow the JNUSU to attend the Inter-Hall Administration committee meeting that was to clear it.The varsity administration argued JNUSU had not been notified due to flouting of election rules. The draft hostel manual proposed to hike hostel charges from Rs 10 for double occupancy to Rs 300, and Rs 600 for single occupancy from the earlier Rs 20.However, after student protests, the varsity administration announced a 50 per cent concession for the BPL category students, but it failed to pacify the students. The issue is being handled by the Ministry of Human Resource Development's high-powered committee which has given its recommendations to the varsity administration after several meetings with students and their representatives.
--IANS rag/kr