UoH delegitimising GS-CASH: Women students

HYDERABAD: In a unique show of support and solidarity, 630 women students of the University of Hyderabad cutting across political lines have submitted a representation to the vice-chancellor demanding immediate revocation of the suspension of 10 students, including two women students and one of them a GS-CASH member. Stating that penalising a representative who was discharging her duty on that night was a violation of the Saksham guidelines and goes against the spirit of gender sensitisation.  Initiated by women students, the representation was submitted to the VC, Podile Apparao on Monday. The VC is also considering the earlier representations submitted by the suspended students and Students Union.

“The core of it is gender issue. The way the drunk warden publicly shamed the woman student for being found in a male student’s room and said “will you be satisfied if all boys are sent to your hostel” amounts to public shaming and sexual intimidation and harassment,” said a PhD scholar. She added that it was at this point that the GSCASH member, Tinanajali Dam, was called in only to be later suspended for ‘misbehavior and manhandling of wardens’.

The students have also accused the administration of delegitimising the GS-CASH by failing to take into cognizance issues of sexual harassment within the campus, especially if the perpetrators happen to be from the side of the administration.“If the woman student felt sexually intimidated by an inebriated committee members, it mandated intervention of the GS-CASH representative. But with the representative herself being in the list of the suspended students, is it not ridiculous that the university boasts of setting up one of the first GS CASH in the country,” said Debomita Mukherjee, an undersignee. Besides forbidding women from entering the “masculinised space of men’s hostel” the students also claimed that they were there as their  freedom of movement was being controlling by security staff if they were to be seen on the campus late night.

Anju Rao, a student said that there was a need for women of the University to stand up as a force in times like these when “harassment of this kind is an attack on our collective wellbeing and against the justice.” They have demanded an immediate and unconditional revocation of the suspension.

With vice-chancellor Apparao Podile deciding to refer the suspension of the 10 students to the appellate authority, the executive council (EC), the matter has been put on the back burner till December 2, when the EC is scheduled to meet. This mean the students will have to wait for some more time. The ray of hope however is that if the EC’s decision is in favour of the students, they would be allowed to appear for the end semester exams, provided they meet the normal academic requirements.

A statement released late on Monday night read, “He has decided to refer the matter to the appellate authority, the executive council (EC) scheduled to meet on December 02, 2017. Pending consideration of their appeal, the university has decided to keep the suspension order in abeyance until the matter is disposed by the appellate authority.”