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AMU students protest against the recent fee hike, demanding an immediate rollback and calling for long-pending student union elections to restore campus democracy.
AMU students protest against steep fee hike demanding immediate rollback.
The All India Jammu and Kashmir Students Association has appealed to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to urgently reverse the recent steep hike in annual fees at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), warning that the increase will prevent thousands of students from underprivileged backgrounds from accessing higher education.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Nasir Khehami, the Association’s national convenor, said, “The students have been courageously opposing what they see as an arbitrary, unjustified and exclusionary fee hike of up to 36-42 per cent imposed by the university administration.” He added, “For this session, the fee for some courses has increased by around 30-40 per cent. For example, the B.Lib course fee was Rs 16,000 last year and has been raised to over Rs 22,000.”
Khehami further noted that AMU Proctor Wasim Ali confirmed the fee increase ranged from Rs 500 to Rs 1,500 across courses, explaining that the hike was mainly to improve infrastructure and was a collective decision by various committees. However, he emphasised, “this explanation does not lessen the crushing burden on the students, many of whom come from socially backward classes, working-class families and economically weaker sections, and are already struggling to meet their daily expenses, including basic meals.”
AMU spokesperson Omar Peerzada said the university was taking prompt steps to address students’ concerns regarding the fee hike. The university has circulated a proforma on social media platforms, inviting continuing students to submit suggestions related to the fee increase. Prof M Asmer Beg, convener of the newly formed committee on the fee hike issue, has urged bona-fide students to file their demands through the proforma.
The Students Association also called on the government to investigate the alleged assault on protesters at the Bab-e-Syed Gate during a peaceful demonstration on Friday, when they were forcibly removed from the dharna site.
The Association highlighted the absence of an elected student union at AMU for the past seven years, accusing university authorities of suppressing peaceful protests due to “no accountability and transparency,” and said a communication gap is growing on campus without democratic student bodies.
Additionally, the Association urged the Union Education Minister to look into the dire conditions of AMU hostels, citing overcrowding, poor sanitation, and lack of hygiene.
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Meanwhile, protests at the AMU campus entered their fifth day on Tuesday, with a large number of students boycotting classes. On Sunday, protesters gathered at Bab-e-Syed Gate for an indefinite dharna demanding the rollback of the fee hike, holding long-overdue student union elections that have been delayed for eight years, and calling for the removal of senior university officials allegedly responsible for the crisis.
Several Opposition MPs have also written to AMU Vice-Chancellor Prof. Naima Khatoon, expressing concern over police and university actions against protesters last Friday, when students were offering collective Friday prayers at the dharna site.
(With inputs from PTI)
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