After Facing Flak, Wardha University Revokes Expulsion Of Students Who Wrote Letters To PM Modi

The Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya (MGAHV) in Maharashtra’s Wardha on Sunday revoked the expulsion of six students, who had organised a protest event to write letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the rising incidents of mob lynching. In its order on Sunday, MGAHV Acting Registrar Kadar Nawaj Khan said the expulsion was cancelled due to “technical anomalies” and in the view of natural justice to students.

The university had to face widespread resentment in the students’ community as well as Opposition parties like the Congress which had complained to Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer against university officials. Sharing News Nation's report, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor had asked Union HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal to intervene and reverse the decision.

Outraged by the decision of the Wardha Central University to expel six students fir writing a letter to @PMOIndia : https://t.co/nhOgpI6T9e. Such actions are strangling democracy where it should be incubated, in our campuses. Hope @DrRPNishank will intervene & reverse this.

— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) October 12, 2019

The central university though didn’t mention the event in its expulsion order and said that the students were expelled for violating the Model Code of Conduct and “mass demonstrations with the intent to interfere in the administrative process”.

All the six students who were expelled by the university were reportedly from the lower caste and other backward classes. Their names are - Chandan Saroj, Neeraj Kumar, Rajesh Sarthi, Rajnish Ambedkar, Pankaj Vela and Vaibhav Pimpalkar.

Also Read | 6 Wardha Central University Students Expelled After Event To Write Protest Letters To PM Modi

In a statement released after the incident, the All India Students Association (AISA) said that the letters written by the students during Wednesday’s event had protested against the mob lynching incidents, “sell-out” of publicly-owned companies, “silencing of Kashmir”, “shielding of rape-accused leaders” and “murder of democracy” under the Narendra Modi-led BJP government.

According to the Quint, the event to write letters was organised in solidarity with the 49 celebrities who wrote a letter to PM Modi to draw his attention towards the incidents of mob lynching. The BJP-JDU coalition government in Bihar had filed sedition case against them for their letter to Modi.

After facing the flak from all quarters, the Bihar government relented and closed the case, calling it malicious. The Bihar police also said that action will be taken against the complainant for false case.