JNU Teachers and Students Begin Hunger Strike Over Delayed Promotions, Hostel Reopening And Unaddressed Grievances

New Delhi: In protest against alleged delays in promotions, members of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers' Association started a 24-hour hunger strike on campus on Monday, August 12, 2024.

The protest was started by sixteen students, some of whom were JNUSU office bearers. They demanded several things, including the reopening of JNU's Barak hostel, which had been closed since its opening in February, an increase in the amount of merit-cum-means scholarships, and the reinstatement of the gender sensitisation committee against sexual harassment, reported PTI.

Along with these demands, the JNU Students Union (JNUSU) went on an indefinite hunger strike on campus, calling for the reversal of several long-standing investigations into student misconduct, among other things.

The Chief Proctor Office Manual, which levied fines of up to Rs 20,000 for arranging protests in off-campus locations, has also been demanded by the students to be removed. The student body claimed that it sent Pandit a Charter of Demands on April 12 but never heard back.

According to PTI, at the protest location, posters with the slogans "Promoting the truth about promotion," "Promotions are hard earned," and "Waiting for promotions" were displayed.

The demonstrators claimed that since 2016, advancements under the University Grants Commission's Career Advancement Scheme (CAS) had been given out arbitrarily and frequently delayed.

More than 130 faculty members' CAS applications are still pending, JNUTA president Moushumi Basu told PTI.

The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers' Association (JNUTA) has over a dozen professors from different departments participating in the sit-in at the School of Languages lawn.

The demonstrators asked that the administration pay them for the years they did not receive promotions and approve the postponed promotions. They went on to say that the promotion date ought to be regarded as the minimum eligibility date, PTI reported.

Vice-Chancellor Santishree D. Pandit of Jawaharlal Nehru University did not immediately respond to PTI's questions about the strikes or the accusations made by instructors and students.

(With Inputs From PTI)