NB: Congratulations, Bhimraj, for standing up to oppression and injustice. Human dignity can never be destroyed. Regradless of your admission to Oxford, you deserved just and fair treatment. Our university authorities need to understand that education is the awakening of the human spirit. Unfortunately they often behave as if they are aiming at the very opposite. All the best for your future career. DS
On 13 November 2022, I was taken to hospital after I collapsed at the South Asian University (SAU). A doctor said I should be hospitalised as there was a possibility of cardiac arrest. My hunger strike had damaged my health. On the third day of my protest fast, my sugar levels dropped below 60, and I became weak and shaky.
How did it come to this?
Some students of SAU, including me, had begun a hunger strike some days ago against the arbitrary expulsion of five students without any inquiry. We were protesting to push for an increase in the monthly stipends of those pursuing master’s degrees, and representation in SAU’s anti-harassment committees. Though more than 100 students participated in the protest, the university administration singled out us five to set an example. The university’s plan to intimidate students by calling the Delhi Police to the campus had not worked.
Lying in a hospital bed with IV fluids injected into my veins, I desperately wanted to tell my story to the world – the story of the struggle of SAU students against a despotic university administration. But no popular mainstream media was interested.
Days later, on 22 November, my friend Ammar Ahmad, who was thrown out for a year along with me, suffered a cardiac arrest and was admitted to the ICU. The next day, more than 100 students marched to the acting Registrar’s office and demanded justice for our friend fighting for his life in the ICU. The administration reduced the punishment and agreed to take care of Ammar’s medical expenses. However, we demanded complete revocation of the earlier orders. But the university once again called the Delhi police to the campus. The police mediated and asked the administration to arrange a meeting with the protesting students and resolve issues amicably. The university administration agreed to meet the students the next day, only to deceive us once again…
Venue for a Speech on Tamas – A Chronicle of an Event That Should Never Have Happened
After the truth-shower 