Students protest ‘proposed fee increase’, Registrar denies move at Sirsa university

Students at Chaudhary Devi Lal University (CDLU) in Sirsa staged a protest on Tuesday afternoon against a “proposed hike in fees”.

The protest escalated when students, dissatisfied with the university administration’s response, entered the Registrar’s office.

Registrar Dr Rajesh Bansal left his seat and vacated the office. The students sat in the office, demanding that the university revoke the “fee-hike proposal”.

They argued that a sudden increase in fees would economically burden students as it would be difficult for many to afford the revised fees. The protest sparked a heated argument between students and the university administration, with the Registrar not responding to their demands.

Students claimed that the Registrar threatened to expel those involved and warned them of police action.

Despite the alleged threats, and efforts from Proctor Umed Singh and other faculty members to calm the students, the protest continued.

The university’s security team arrived at the site of the protest to control the situation.

Earlier, rumours had spread that the university was planning to raise fees, prompting students to voice their concerns.

Visuals of the incident have since made the rounds on social media, with students accusing the administration of mistreating them.

Students demanded that the university seek “proper” financial support from the state government instead of burdening students.

They called for transparency, and urged the university to issue a white paper on its financial situation, requesting that the administration reverse the “proposed fee increase”. Student leaders condemned the “threats” as violations of their democratic rights and freedom of expression.

They warned that if the administration continued its “oppressive” approach, protests would escalate.

The Dr Ambedkar Student Council of Haryana and the Naujawan Bharat Sabha backed the protest, urging the university to reconsider its actions.

In response to the protests, Dr Bansal told the The Tribune that there was currently no proposal for a hike in fees. He said, before admissions, the university formed a committee to review the prospectus, which includes course fees.

The committee, formed on March 2 with 10 members, was tasked with evaluating fees at other government universities in the state and rationalising the university’s procedure.

Dr Bansal said the committee’s recommendations would go through three levels of review — by the Vice-Chancellor, the Academic Council and the Executive Council.

The final decision would only be made after these reviews, with the prospectus scheduled to be released before May 15.

Dr Bansal said the process was a regular annual procedure, and that no fee increase had been implemented yet. He suggested that students had been misled into protesting.