Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) called upon the students of Delhi University (DU) to “rise against the incident in Gargi College” and presents demands to ensure safety in college fests.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) along with the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) called a meeting at the Arts Faculty, North Campus on 11th February to discuss the incident at Gargi College involving cases of molestation and outsiders trespassing into the College premises during Reverie 2020, the annual cultural fest.
At 12:30 p.m. a small crowd of about 60 gathered at the gate of the Delhi University Arts Faculty armed with ABVP flags and placards calling out the administration of Gargi College. Representatives of the ABVP spoke on the incident saying that they had received no explanation from the Students’ Union of Gargi College or the Principal of Gargi College. They claimed that the security present was only adequate for about 3,000 people while in reality there were about 10,000 people present at the Fest. They said that following the incident, the College had been unable to take proper measures or file an FIR and that students had been crying and writing letters of complaint, not knowing who to address them to. They were also critical of the Dean of Student Welfare and Proctor of Delhi University, calling them out for “sitting in their A.C. offices” and not being present or taking any action on the incident. The also brought up the matter of the delay in declaration of results for the semester examination and said the Dean of Student Welfare and Proctor should vacate their seats if they are unable to carry out their responsibilities.
They also appeared to take a dig at the other student organisations, pointing out that the people who “protest all year round” were absent and only talk about the issue on social media. They called this breach of security a, “Question mark on the future of students in the county” and said it was not enough to protest there, and that each and every student should raise their voices in their own colleges to raise awareness and urge the colleges to beef up security with the fest season just around the corner. The ABVP reiterated their role as a student union and said they resolved to protect their sisters around Delhi University. They also alleged that some had tried to give the incident a communal twist and that it was simply an attempt to stir controversy. The ABVP was also critical of the organizers for allowing the fest to become a “business” and “selling tickets to outsiders”. Addressing the police personnel present at the meeting, they urged the Delhi Police to look into the matter with care and to take steps to ensure security at the upcoming college fests to avoid such an incident, saying that “nothing more shameful could have happened”.
In a circular asking “Who is answerable? Who is accountable? Who is responsible?” and at the meeting, they stated the following demands:
- Take strict action against the culprits accused in the Gargi fest molestation case.
- Accountability must be fixed for fest security in colleges.
- Entry in college fests should be by valid ID card only.
- Students’ Union, College administration and Police must collectively ensure the security in college fests.
- The corruption by nexus of Union representatives and College administration must be exposed.
- University must issue guidelines to ensure the security of students without attacking the autonomy of organisers.
Speaking to journalists at the meeting, an ABVP representative also talked about the ABVP’s ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party, saying that the ABVP had protested against Atal Bihari Vajpayee as well as Narendra Modi in recent times “regarding issues of scholarships” and other matters and said that the students were their first priority.
Amid chants of “Bharat Mata ki Jai”, “Vande Mataram” and “Gargi College Admin, down down”, the protest was concluded at around 2:00 p.m. and the crowd gradually dispersed.
On the other hand, the students of Gargi College continue to protest against their administration, and have distanced themselves from other parties incentivising their issues. They neither support any political party and nor asked for any interference on their matters.
Feature Image Credits: Tashi Dorjoy Sherpa for DU Beat.
Tashi Dorjay Sherpa
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