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| Why I taught class on Mumbai roadsi |
| Blog: Why I taught class on Mumbai roadside
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| INDIA
, 16-January-2014
3:12:29 AM |
| Dr Neeraj Hatekar, a professor in the Economics Department at the University of Mumbai, was recently suspended by the University allegedly for criticising the Vice Chancellor. On Tuesday, he took his classes on the road outside the campus gates. Dr Hatekar has petitioned the Bombay High Court against his suspension.
We had barely sat down to dinner on Tuesday when my PhD student Savita walked in. She seemed a little, just a little, excited.
"Amol and Narayan have been taken to the BKC police station, others have gone with them," Savita reported, adding, "they shouted slogans and waved black flags at today's function."
The function, held at the Mumbai University campus at Kalina, was attended by four ministers of the Maharashtra government and the incident happened when the Vice Chancellor stood up to speak.
At the dinner table, this took some time to sink in. My wife quietly packed away the dinner, as no one wanted to eat any more.
What would happen to the students? Had they been arrested? Would the police beat them up?
Narayan and Amol are sons of small farmers from the dryland tracts of interior Maharashtra. I had watched closely as they struggled to pay fees and mess bills when a massive drought struck their homes last year.
The hostel mess had been closed for two months then, pending an administrative decision. Some students had gone back to their home towns because they could no longer afford to eat at hotels and restaurants. Some others resorted to eating only once a day.
I remember the dharna that the students staged for two whole nights before the VC's bungalow, expecting merely an assurance that their mess would be re-opened soon. They were disappointed.
Later, university officials met them amid strict police security and promised to solve all their problems. This was a year ago. The mess has been re-started but other problems remain unsolved.
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