New Delhi, Apr 14 (PTI) Protests intensified over the suspension of eight students in Ambedkar University here with demonstrators staging silent dissent during a lecture on Ambedkar Jayanti on Monday.

According to an official statement by Students Federation Of India (SFI), students activists held up photos of B.R. Ambedkar and placards listing their charter of demands during the 14th Ambedkar Memorial Lecture. These included restoring campus democracy, revoking student suspensions, removing movement restrictions and curfews, and ending alleged administrative repression.

The lecture was presided over by Vice Chancellor Anu Singh Lather, who, along with other guests, witnessed the protest.

SFI alleged that the administration has unjustly suspended three students after the AUD Students’ Council elections for helping a distressed student raise concerns. A hunger strike began last week, during which five more students, including elected union members, were suspended following a sit-in near the registrar’s office.

SFI Delhi president Sooraj Elamon said students have been on hunger strike for over 140 hours with no dialogue from the administration.

“It is alarming that a university named after Babasaheb Ambedkar is refusing to speak with even elected student representatives,” he said.

The AUD administration, however, defended the suspensions, alleging that students vandalised official vehicles and obstructed university operations.

Registrar Navlendra Kumar Singh told PTI that students blocked his and the VC’s vehicles, prompting police intervention. He said a formal complaint had been filed, and an FIR was expected.

The administration cited “obstruction of official duties and endangerment of campus personnel” as grounds for the action. Among the suspended are Sharanya Verma (Students’ Union treasurer), Shubhojeet Dey (PhD scholar), Shefali (SFI AUD secretary), Keerthana, and Ajay.

The initial controversy stems from a March 5 suspension of three students who had issued a press statement linking a suicide attempt to campus bullying. The administration claimed that the statement politicised a sensitive issue.

SFI has denied all charges of vandalism and assault. The student body said female protestors were mishandled by security and accused the registrar of nearly injuring a student during the Friday standoff. They argued that the administration’s response is aimed at delaying legal proceedings and weakening student representation.

Despite the administration’s claims of openness to dialogue, students continue their protest, demanding the immediate revocation of all suspensions and action on their broader demands. PTI MHS HIG HIG