New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is caught in a perfect storm of administrative overreach and left-wing student union duplicity, according to the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). Ordinary students are the real victims, their education derailed amid escalating tensions.
The university administration has imposed draconian measures under the guise of discipline, including hefty fines and expulsions targeting ABVP activists and regular students. When these actions unfolded, the so-called progressive JNUSU remained eerily silent—no protests, no solidarity marches. Fast forward to now: when their own members face similar disciplinary heat from the Chief Proctor’s Office (CPO) manual, the same groups are orchestrating daily strikes, class boycotts, and disruptions that cripple campus life.
This blatant double standard exposes the left’s opportunistic politics. They cheered the CPO manual’s introduction as a ‘reform’ alongside the administration, while ABVP opposed it from day one as anti-student and repressive. Today, facing suspensions under the very rules they backed, they decry it as authoritarian. ABVP demands its immediate scrapping to restore JNU’s democratic ethos.
ABVP JNU President Mayank Panchal minced no words: ‘We’ve fought for student rights, transparency, and democracy since the CPO manual’s rollout. It stifles free expression and autonomy. Left unions ignored our plight but now paralyze classes in theirs. Our struggle is principled, not selective.’
Minister Praveen Kumar Piyush echoed this, slamming the left for chaos-mongering only when it suits them. ‘ABVP rejects vandalism and disruptions. We’re against admin high-handedness and selfish groups who weaponize ‘democracy’ selectively. Campus can’t be a political playground at students’ expense.’
As protests rage, JNU students squeeze between admin iron fist and left-wing self-interest. ABVP vows to champion genuine student voices in this dual crisis, pushing for a return to academic normalcy and true democratic space.