Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) has issued an official order prohibiting its students from involving in protests, dharnas or slogan-raising against constitutional authorities without prior approval on the campus. The authorities have warned of disciplinary action against the offending students otherwise.
In an official order dated November 29, it said, “It has been brought to the notice of the Competent Authority of the University that some students are involved in raising slogans without the permission or intimation to the University authorities against the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India and other law enforcement agencies of the country on the issues which are not related to the academia as well as to the University.”
This order came in response to the protest by students during which slogans were raised against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Recently, students from JMI and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) held huge protests against the recent killings of five people belonging to the Muslim community in Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal. The university emphasized that any such activities are not aligned with its academic environment and must be avoided.
“Attention is invited to the Office Memorandum No. Gen-4/RO/(Estt-T)/2022 dated 29.08.2022 wherein students of the University were advised not the hold such meetings/gathering/dharna or raised slogans in any part of the university campus without prior permission of the University authorities,” the order read.
The authorities warned students from participating in any such protests or dharnas or they will have to face actions as per the rules of the university. The order added, “It is once again reiterated for the information of all students of the University that no protests, dharnas, raising slogans against any constitutional dignitaries shall be allowed in any part of the University Campus, otherwise disciplinary action against such erring students shall be initiated as per provision of the University rules.”
It asked all Deans of Faculties, Heads of the Departments and Directors of Centres to bring this to the notice of the students of their respective faculty / department/Centre. In 2023, JNU has also introduced stringent rules in its revised Chief Proctor Office (CPO) manual, prohibiting wall posters, dharnas, or protests within 100 meters of academic buildings while it mentioned that violation of this rule can result in fines up to Rs 20,000 or expulsion.
Following the orders in JMI, it drew sharp criticism from the All India Students' Association (AISA) and calls for students to unite against the order. AISA also accused the university administration of succumbing to political pressure from the ruling regime. The student body claimed that the Jamia Millia administration had become a “mouthpiece for the BJP-RSS agenda”.
“This is part of the Sangh's larger agenda to strip universities of their autonomy and transform them into factories of conformity. We will not let this legacy be hijacked by the Sangh's foot soldiers in the administration,” AISA added.
The university, which has often been seen as a hub of student activism, witnessed several massive protests, like the Anti-CAA protests in 2019 or BBC documentary screening protests in 2023.
In December 2019, the students led massive protests against the passing of Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in the Parliament. To control the situation, the police entered the campus, which led to violent clashes and widespread condemnation of the alleged excessive use of force. These protests continued into 2020, with students organising solidarity marches with other universities opposing the CAA-NRC policies.
In February 2023, the students planned to screen the controversial BBC documentary, which was critical of the Indian government. The administration had disallowed the screening, which led to clashes and detentions.
