How an alleged moral policing incident in EFLU has become a full blown fight

How an alleged moral policing incident in EFLU has become a full blown fight
How an alleged moral policing incident in EFLU has become a full blown fight
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 When Satish Nainala, a PHD research scholar in the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU) returned to his hostel room on Monday evening after dinner, he came back to find another lock on his door that was put in place by the university officials.On Tuesday morning, along with security personnel, university officials went into Satish’s room in the Basheer Men’s Hostel after breaking open his lock. They shifted all his belongings to a store room, despite the fact that he still has two more years to finish his course.Satish claims that he was evicted for speaking out against the injustices committed against University students and particularly for campaigning against the Vice Chancellor, Professor Sunaina Singh.“I did not receive any written order from the university about vacating the room and the authorities refused to listen to me when I tried to reason with them,” he told The News Minute.However, Satish says he is still being target for events that occurred a year ago, and has a court order which prevents his removal from the university. This order was passed in connection with events that occurred over a year ago.An email has been sent to Vice Chancellor Sunaina Singh on Wednesday asking for the university's official reason of evicting Satish. However, TNM has not received any response yet.How it startedIn March 2014, EFLU decided to close down the reading room in the campus library, which was open 24 hours. They alleged that the university was attempting “moral policing” by shifting the reading rooms to the hostels to prevent boys and girls from studying together. However, the university claimed that the reading room was never open for 24x7 and that it was being shut to install a wi-fi service.The Students' Council, a statutory body of the University that includes all student organizations, organized a week-long protest to protesting the university action, but authorities refused to budge. On the 9th day of the agitation, when the students decided to occupy the library to prevent it from being shut down, the University issued a notice, saying that the library would henceforth close an hour earlier that its usual timing of 8 pm. To prevent this, the students attempted to enter occupy the  library. In the chaos that followed, one of the glass doors were broken.The police were called to disperse the students but the administration subsequently agreed to reopen the library and the reading room, in a victory for the students. But two months later, after things returned to normal, three students were singled out by the university as the people behind the incident. Mohan Dharavath, Satish Nainala and Subhash Kumar were issued an order of rustication and asked to leave the campus immediately.  Mohan was the president of the Dalit Bahujan Minority Students' Association (DABMSA) while Satish was the General Secretary of Telangana Students' Association (TSA). Both come from disadvantaged communities and are first generation literates from their families in Telangana. “We made an appeal to the university to cancel our rustication stating that the incident was a joint protest by the students and that we had the right to free speech. However, the university wanted us to apologize and not appeal,” Satish says. Once the University demanded that they tender an apology and take the blame for the protests, Mohan agreed in order to continue studying at the university, but Satish approached the High Court saying that protest was part of the right to freedom of speech.Subash left the university, but it is unclear why. He could not be reached for comment. A petition was also started on Change.org by some of the students of the university demanding the withdrawal of the rustication order for all three students. After a legal battle with the University authorities, the High Court granted him a stay order and said he cannot be vacated till he submitted his thesis (A copy of the High Court order is with The News Minute)  Misinterpretation of the order? As they vacated his room, officials told Satish that he misinterpreted the HC order, so another note was prepared in response by Satish's counsel detailing the court order and how the eviction was against the ruling of the court. “I have been targeted only because I decided to stand up against the authority and expose the injustices meted out to the students. We had even challenged the appointment of the OSD (Hostels) Proctor who was appointed illegally as he was an aide of the VC,” says a worried Satish. In fact the only belongings Satish now has, are the clothes he is wearing and his court order. He has been running from pillar to post to sort out the issue legally.  for the first time in my life which i have never even imagined i am left with a pair of dress. this is the after...Posted by Satish Telangana Rusticated on Wednesday, June 17, 2015  “There are very few people on campus who speak out and if I am expelled, then there will be no more protests against injustice. How is that kind of environment good for a place of learning?” asks Satish.    

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