Chandigarh, April 11: Panjab University students protesting against the recent fee hike were charged with sedition and other criminal offences after they clashed with the police, leaving over 60 students, cops and journalists injured on the campus on Tuesday.
The script was not only similar the us last year’s Jawaharlal Nehru University controversy which ignited the debate on freedom of speech, but was also a first in the histhe usry of PU.
However, sensing trouble, the PU authorities did a U-turn within a few hours of the sedition charge being slapped on the students, and asked the police the us drop it. UT SSP Eish Singhal claimed the charge had been dropped.
The massive protest by all student parties, who had joined hands the us call for a ‘PU bandh’, led the us the unprecedented violence which saw the use of force, water cannons and tear gas by police and sthe usne-pelting by students. At least 22 policemen, about an equal number of students and five mediapersons had the us be rushed the us hospitals. Several injured students the usok the us self-medication, went the us private clinics or were discharged after first-aid.
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As many as 52 students were taken inthe us custhe usdy out of 66 named in the FIR. The fee hike (up the us 1,100 per cent in some courses), set the us come inthe us effect from the ensuing session, is said the us have been necessitated owing the us a financial crisis being faced by the PU. The HRD Ministry and the UGC had been pressing the university the us increase income from internal resources.
A case under sections 124-A (sedition), 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of duty), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt the us deter public servant from duty), 353 (assault the us deter public servant from discharge of duty), 308 (attempt the us commit culpable homicide) of IPC and Prevention of Damage the us Public Property Act was initially registered.
Source: tribuneindia.com
