Thali ‘bajao’ march to principal video uproar: Five major protests that rocked DU despite curbs

In many cases, the protests have transcended the political divide between the BJP-backed ABVP and its opponents as students have pushed back against attempts by college and the university administrations to discipline them.

What’s been happening, and why?

DU’s attempts at making students fall in line began on February 17, when Proctor Manoj Kumar Singh issued an order prohibiting protests and public meetings on campus without prior permission.

The order, which came after several weeks of gradually tightening controls, was triggered by a violent protest against a set of guidelines issued by the University Grants Commission to deal with discrimination, including on the basis of caste, in institutions of higher education. YouTuber Ruchi Tiwari was allegedly manhandled at the protest.

The blanket ban on demonstrations ordered by the university was followed by the police imposing restrictions under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) across North Campus. The police then issued a second notification that barred “unrestricted” assembly for a month until April 25.

On March 12, the Delhi High Court frowned at the sweeping restrictions on protests by students.

Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya observed: “There are some pre-conditions that have to be met before passing any order under BNSS Section 163… Not only ‘apprehension’… if you’ve to prevent something which is going to happen tomorrow, only then can you use order under (BNSS Section 163). We are clearly of the opinion that there cannot be a blanket ban… We are also very doubtful if CrPC Section 144 (BNSS Section 163 equivalent) can be used.”

But the court also cautioned students that “this liberty cannot be misused”, and asked that they conduct themselves “appropriately”.

DU remained undeterred by the HC’s observations. On March 23, the university formalised a new structure to regulate dissent on campus: any protest in central university spaces would require a signed application submitted 72 hours in advance, detailing names, affiliations, turnout, duration, logistics, and speakers.

Social media announcements would not count. Outsiders were barred. Violations could invite rustication, expulsion, or police action.

But the protests have not reduced. Besides students, staff and faculty have also been demonstrating. Consider.

* Earlier this month, students of LSR protested after principal Kanika K Ahuja appeared in a video on the BJP’s official Instagram handle praising the Women’s Reservation Bill.

Ahuja described the reservation legislation as “a constitutional course correction” and “long overdue”, which enabled a shift “from women’s development to women-led development”.

But students argued that the principal’s appearance on a party platform blurred the political neutrality of the institution.

It was later alleged that parents of protesting students were contacted. Ahuja told The Indian Express that no prior intimation had been given before the protest.

According to the principal, she had appeared in the video in an “individual capacity”, and it was “important to distinguish between personal intellectual engagement with a social subject and a formal institutional communique”.

* On April 16, students gathered outside the gates of IP College for Women to protest against the alleged cancellation of farewell events for those opting out of the Four-Year Undergraduate Program.

The protest was led by the ABVP, and also raised questions about the quality of infrastructure, food, and facilities on campus.

* Around the same time, Gargi College witnessed clashes during student council elections. Left-affiliated groups alleged that ABVP members had forcibly entered the campus and engaged in intimidation and harassment. The ABVP, on the other hand, raised concerns about transparency in the electoral process. The organisation later claimed protests were held across almost 30 DU colleges in a single week.

* At Dyal Singh College (Evening), it was faculty members who staged a protest against the proposed renaming of the institution after the Khalsa army commander Baba Banda Singh Bahadur.

Staff Association member Mithilesh Singh argued that DU’s March 23 order was for protests on the DU campus, and not on college campuses.

* On March 18, before the proctor’s notification, the Congress-affiliated student organisation NSUI organised a “Thali-Taali Bajao Abhiyaan” across North and South Campus. Hundreds of students gathered, banging utensils to protest shortages of cooking gas cylinders that they said had disrupted mess services and daily meals.

“Students in the national capital are being forced to sleep hungry due to LPG shortages… This is not just a supply issue, this is a failure of governance,” NSUI national president Vinod Jakhar said at the time.

At the heart of the simmering turmoil is dissonance over what constitutes legitimate protest and the university’s stated imperative of enforcing discipline on campus. University authorities have maintained that the system is by and large being followed.

DU Proctor Manoj Singh said: “Since we have issued the notification to furnish their information, all student parties have notified us 72 hours prior to the organisation of demonstrations. This notification is particularly only talking about protests that happen in the university area like the Arts Faculty. We do not interfere in college matters… All we can say is any protests that have taken place following the notification, we have been informed and that has helped us coordinate with the police and minimise conflict on ground.”

Singh could not give a specific number of the number of applications received by his office with the furnished information by different student groups before protesting.

Student groups, however, presented a different version.

ABVP’s Delhi State Secretary Sarthak Sharma said: “As soon as the notification came out, we made it clear that the ABVP is against this move. We only provide an intimation before the protest… but we are not furnishing any names of the students, we only give them a rough number of the people who are going to be mobilised.”

He added, “This notification is not interrupting any mobilisation or gatherings students plan on holding on campus.”

On March 12, while weighing in against the “blanket ban”, the Delhi High Court asked students not to “misuse” their liberty. “…We have to balance the situation,” Chief Justice Upadhyaya had said.