The students of Punjab Agricultural University on Tuesday vowed to keep their strike going till the Vice-Chancellor cancelled his punishment orders against three students of College of Agricultural Engineering who were found sleeping in the open on the campus in the wee hours of July 22. Three students Dilpreet,Harpreet and Jashandeep were allegedly sleeping on the road near the College of Veterinary Sciences. Morning walkers clicked their photos and mailed them to PAU Vice-Chancellor B S Dhillon. Acting on this,the V-C cancelled admission of Jashandeep and Harpreet to masters programme and rusticated Dilpreet for one year,who is last year student of BTech. Following this,students of College of Agriculture,College of Agricultural Engineering and College of Basic Sciences and Humanities went on strike,boycotting classes. On Monday,the three students started hunger strike in front of Thapar Hall. While the V-C had told Ludhiana Newsline that he was ready to re-consider his decision provided students accept their mistake in written and promise it will not be repeated in future,students on Tuesday said that the V-C action is completely unjustified as neither they were drunk,nor they misbehaved with anyone and thus varsity cannot spoil their one year on any basis. The point is that the students were not drunk and they were just sleeping in the open because they did not get the hostel room at that night. Till justice is done with the students,we will continue to boycott classes. We want proof from varsity that they were drunk, said Karanvir from PAU Students Union. However,the V-C in a statement on Tuesday said,They were found lying on roadside in an inebriated condition. One of these students,Dilpreet,was on conduct probation and expelled from the university hostel. PAU administration took serious note of this act of indiscipline and misconduct. These students and their parents met the Vice-Chancellor and requested him to take a lenient view. We have advised the students to submit written apology admitting their fault and assuring that they will not indulge in such activities in future.
