Season of protests raises political temperatures in Haryana

Protests in various corners of the state are causing political temperatures to soar. From students of Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agriculture University (HAU), Hisar, to outsourced employees at Pt BD Sharma University of Health Sciences, Rohtak (UHSR), to villagers at Koriawas (Mahendragarh), it is protest season in Haryana. The state is on the boil with a groundswell of indefinite dharnas intensifying political tensions. The Opposition is having a field day as its leaders go dharna-hopping, lending support to the protesters.

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In Hisar, the HAU students have been protesting for over two weeks following an alleged assault on students by university security personnel during a demonstration against the cut in stipend on June 10. While the authorities have acted by suspending and arresting an assistant professor and registering FIRs against eight officials, including the Registrar and security head, the unrest continues. The administration has also put the stipend cut on hold, but students remain adamant, demanding the immediate removal of the Vice-Chancellor, Prof BR Kamboj.

Even as their protest gains momentum and support has poured in from the College of Agriculture at Bawal (Rewari), a constituent college of the HAU, as also the JNU and DU, the protest has become a rallying point for the Opposition. The agitation has drawn support from across the political spectrum, with prominent leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda, MPs Kumari Selja and Randeep Surjewala, JJP’s Ajay and Dushyant Chautala, INLD’s Abhay Chautala, and AAP leaders, extending their support.

The Nayab Singh Saini-led BJP government’s attempts to broker peace with the constitution of a four-member committee comprising senior ministers and an MLA have come to  naught. To escalate pressure, the students have called a 'Students' Nyay Mahapanchayat' tomorrow (June 24).

In Rohtak, another protest has been brewing for nearly three weeks. A section of outsourced employees at the University of Health Sciences are demanding their services be shifted under the Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam (HKRN). Currently hired from a private contractor, but paid through the university, the workers allege exploitation—wage deductions and harassment through falsified attendance records. While the university has requested the government to shift these workers to the HKRN, employees remain unconvinced. Following a court directive, their protest site has moved beyond 200 metres from the PGIMS campus. The issue has disrupted hospital services and attracted political support from leaders, including Congress MP Deepender Hooda and former Deputy Chief Minister and JJP leader Dushyant Chautala.

At Koriawas village, residents have been holding a dharna for over 50 days, demanding that the newly built Maharshi Chawan Government Medical College be renamed after Rao Tula Ram, a revered freedom fighter from the region. The villagers, who donated 80 acres for the project through the gram panchayat, argue that they were not consulted before naming the institution, and that naming it after Rao Tula Ram would better reflect the region’s historical identity.

With multiple local agitations simmering across Haryana, the protests are fast becoming a rallying point for opposition leaders, even though there are no elections slated for the near future.

“These protests are fuelled by a frustrated Opposition that has not been able to find anything against the BJP government in the state. The protesters are being misled, which is evident from the fact that the HAU students agreed to the offer of the committee of ministers constituted to mediate, only to reject the proposals an hour later,” claimed the CM’s media adviser, Parveen Atri.