NIT Calicut puts order suspending Dalit student on hold following protests, condemnation

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By K A Shaji

Feb 02, 2024

In the face of condemnation from the public, the NITC, Calicut, has decided to put on hold the suspension of an engineering student, who organised a single-person protest on campus.

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The Dean suspended Dalit student Vysakh Premkumar on 31 January after accusing him of inciting an “illegal gathering” that resulted in “campus unrest” on 22 January.

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Following the protests, the institute also announced three non-functional days on 2, 3, and 4 February and asked the students not to “venture out of hostel premises”.

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The order was issued putting on hold the suspension of Vyshakh Premkumar, who was protesting against a function on campus hailing the Ram temple consecration in Ayodhya.

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Vysakh is a fourth-year BTech student at NIT-C, and his lone protest invited angry responses from the Sangh Parivar members and sympathisers on the campus.

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Despite roughing him up for organising the protest against what looked like an official celebration of the consecration by the institute, the authorities chose to suspend him.

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The suspension had led to large-scale protests on campus under the joint aegis of major student unions — the SFI, the KSU and the Fraternity Movement.

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Despite repeatedly contacting the dean’s office, South First is yet to receive any response. The institution’s public relations officer said she was not competent enough to talk about the issue.

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