Civil court rules in favour of TISS students; no ban on protesting on campus
Bombay Civil Court rules in favor of TISS students, overturning protest ban near campus. Students now demand lift of ban on protests.
Mumbai: The Bombay Civil Court has ruled in favour of students from the Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS), overturning a 2018 order that prohibited protests within a 100-meter radius of the main campus gate. The order was made public on Thursday.
After the court’s order, students now demand that the institute lift the ban on the protest. A joint statement issued on Friday by the Adivasi Students Forum, Northeast Student Forum and Progressive Students Forum, reads, “The court order is a backfire for such anti-student and discriminatory practices of all university administrations across as well as reinstating the importance of campus democracy.”
In 2018, TISS filed a civil suit against six protesting students, seeking the court’s intervention to halt demonstrations. The institute aimed to prevent students from damaging college property, shouting slogans, obstructing daily operations, and setting up tents on campus, leading to the court’s initial interim order banning protests within the specified radius.
The students had been protesting for months, demanding that the institute waive hostel and dining hall charges for those receiving the Government of India Post Matriculate Scholarship (GoI-PMS). As the case proceeded, it became clear that despite the presence of tents on campus, no destruction of property occurred as the institute had claimed. Additionally, the court observed that most defendants were no longer on campus, thus nullifying the perceived threat of continued strikes.
The court’s order stated, “It appears that the defendants were placing their demands and agitation against the decision of management in respect of GoI-MPL students for their rights. Admittedly, now the defendants have left the college and the documents placed on record by the defendants clearly indicate that they have conducted their Andolan/bandh in a peaceful manner as well as a hunger strike. Now, there is no immediate threat of any strike from the defendants as they have not remained part of the plaintiff’s institute as students now.”
One of the defendants, a current student at TISS who wished to remain anonymous, said, “The protest continued for a couple of months, but even after that, the institute kept informing the court that we were still protesting for the same cause, even when that was not the case. Also, there was no destruction, and the tents were set up only temporarily.”
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