Fault lines widen as Panjab varsity protest enters Day 13, students firm

Thirteen days into their indefinite sit-in, Panjab University students on Thursday remained defiant, vowing to continue their protest until the long-awaited Senate election schedule is officially notified, even as regional fault lines deepened, with groups from Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh sparring over the university’s ownership.

The protest site near the Vice-Chancellor’s office lawns witnessed fresh tension today when a tractor trolley carrying langar from a local gurdwara was stopped at gate No. 1 by the university security and denied entry. The move triggered outrage among students, who confronted the guards until it was finally allowed in. Langar has been a daily feature since Monday, when PU witnessed one of its largest mobilisations in decades, with thousands rallying against the Centre’s October 30 Senate and Syndicate overhaul.

Despite the Centre’s complete rollback of the restructuring notification on November 7 — following The Tribune’s November 1 exposé that triggered a political firestorm in Punjab and Chandigarh — the students’ agitation has not abated. They insist that only a formal written Senate election notification issued under the pre-October 30 structure will end the protest.

Around 250-300 students attended Thursday’s dharna as about 50 police personnel maintained a low-profile presence around the campus. The Vice-Chancellor, Prof Renu Vig, had last week sent the draft election schedule to Vice-President and Chancellor CP Radhakrishnan for approval, but four days on, the formal notification remains pending.

Leaders across political, farmers’ and civil society groups continued visiting the protest site to express solidarity. Those who came today included MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, former Punjab minister Gurkirat Singh Kotli, Youth Akali Dal president Sarabjit Singh Jhinger, SOI coordinator Gurpreet Singh Raju Khanna and advocates Bhim Waraich and Amarjeet Singh.

On Wednesday, BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) chief Joginder Singh Ugrahan had joined the protest, declaring his support to the students’ “legitimate democratic struggle”.

The PU Bachao Morcha, which is spearheading the movement, reaffirmed that its fight was not about any particular state’s claim over PU, but solely about restoring the Senate’s constitutional authority. “The dissolution or delay of Senate elections is unconstitutional,” the morcha said in its latest statement, thanking residents from nearby villages for daily contributions of food, milk and logistics.

Meanwhile, the debate over PU’s inter-state ownership has split the student community, with some Haryana and Himachal Pradesh students calling for their states’ rightful share in the university, while the core protesters insist the movement is “for PU’s autonomy, not its partition”.

As the indefinite sit-in stretches into its third week, both sides — the administration and the students — appear locked in a standoff, awaiting the Chancellor’s nod to end the impasse.