Ex-JNUSU president barred from entering JNU campus at Vice-Chancellor's order

NEW DELHI: The JNU Vice Chancellor has declared the varsity campus "out of bounds" for a former JNUSU President because of her "undesirable activities" after she participated in a strike by contractual workers. In an order issued Thursday, JNU Chief Proctor Rajnish Kumar Mishra said: "In view of the undesirable activities of Sucheta De, an ex-student of School of Social Sciences of the University, the Vice-Chancellor in exercise of her powers vested in her under Statute 32 of the Statutes of the University, has ordered that the entire JNU Campus is declared out of bounds with immediate effect."

The order also mentioned anyone giving shelter to Sucheta De -- who is also All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) National Vice President -- in any premises of the university will invite strict disciplinary action against himself/herself. Speaking to PTI, De termed the order completely "arbitrary" and a curtailment of her freedom to move within the country.

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The contractual workers are on an indefinite sit-in on the campus against denial of wages for three months. The protests, which began on Wednesday, are being supported by JNUSU and AICCTU. De, who was the JNUSU President in 2012 from the All India Students’ Association (AISA), a left wing student group, also participated in the protest, but on Friday she was barred from entering the campus. "When I was entering the campus to participate in the sit-in by workers on Friday, I was stopped by Security guards led by security officer Suryaprakash. It is completely against the law to prevent a trade union leader from coming to any workplace to organise workers," she said.

De said that the order has been issued against her to stifle the voice of contractual workers. "Contractual workers of JNU are being made to work without pay for months. This is nothing but a violation of Payment of Wages Act and constitutes bonded labour," she said "Despite repeated intimations by the union and workers, the JNU administration has allowed such violation to happen continuously,” she said. “The workers started their agitation on May 4 when they were again denied payment for three months,” she added.