Inquilab Forever- Who’s in charge, if everyone’s protesting?

Source: The post is based on the article “Inquilab Forever- Who’s in charge, if everyone’s protesting?” published in “The Times of India” on 14th October 2023.

Syllabus: GS2- Governance- Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Education.

News: The article discusses Jadavpur University authorities protesting against their own students over disagreements on student representation, likening it to various leaders who have protested while in power.

What are the issues at Jadavpur University?

Issues at Jadavpur University:

Protests by Authorities: Unusually, the university’s leaders, including the acting vice-chancellor and several professors, are protesting against their own students. This is a unique situation where those in power are adopting protest tactics typically used by those they govern.

Representation Disagreement: The central issue is about student representation. Students demanded representation on the welfare board and the anti-ragging committee, but their request was denied by the authorities.

Authority Reaction: The university officials were not only unhappy with the students’ demands but were also aggrieved by the students’ “expression and behaviour”, which further intensified the conflict.

Leadership Vacuum: With both students and university authorities involved in protests, there’s uncertainty about who’s managing the institution and how decisions are being made.