Haryana Agricultural University Protest: No end in sight as students reject stipend cuts, quota rule change

For the eight days in a row, students at Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU), Hisar, continue to press for disciplinary action against the varsity staff for brutally assaulting students. Their protest has become a rallying point for everyone from farm leaders to opposition parties and student groups in the state and beyond.

Hundreds of students have been staging a round-the-clock sit-in outside the agriculture university’s gate number four for more than a week, demanding criminal charges against and sacking of HAU’s security personnel and top office bearers, including vice chancellor Baldev Raj Kamboj.

The attempts by a varsity-appointed committee and the state government officials to mediate and pacify the students have so far yielded little, as many students continue to boycott classes and exams. While the authorities have blamed the agitators for shunning the dialogue, students have accused the administration of autocratic behaviour and threatening protesters.

Haryana Agricultural University: The stalemate

The stalemate at CCSHAU, one of the largest and among the most prominent agriculture education institutes in the country, began after a protest by students in front of the VC office on June 10 against the varsity's decisions to cut educational aid for postgraduation (PG) students and PhD scholars, and to change the reservation rules for aspirants hailing from the villages that donated land to the university, called LDVs (land donating villages).

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As the students asked for rollback of the two decisions, security guards allegedly resorted to lathicharge to disperse the students. The university has, however, blamed the agitators for first beating the guards. When the anguished students gathered outside the VC residence in the evening the same day, an assistant professor once again beat them with a stick, resulting in grave injuries on two students' heads.

CCSHAU Hisar has since condemned the violence and suspended the teacher. A three-member ‘coordination’ committee led by the institute's director of research Rajbir Garg has been formed to negotiate with the agitating students. Based on a complaint by one of the injured students, Hisar Police have booked eight persons including the assistant professor, the university registrar and the chief security officer under the attempt to murder, rioting and criminal intimidation charges.

CCS HAU Hisar: PG stipends, reservation

On May 13, before commencing the admissions for the new academic year 2025-26, CCSHAU notified changes in its merit stipend and LDV seat rules. While the university, since 2017, has been providing a monthly merit stipend of Rs 6,000 and Rs 10,000 respectively to all MSc and PhD students scoring above 7.5 cumulative grade point average (CGPA) in the qualifying exam – other students get a ‘regular’ stipend of Rs 3,000 and Rs 5,000 respectively – the administration decided to limit it to only 25% of the top qualifying students. LDV reservation norms were changed to limit the benefit of the quota to only one course for a particular student.

The university has justified the fellowship cuts citing the fund crunch at the institute. “While in 2017, our financial liability was Rs 75 lakh, it has now grown to Rs 9 crore. There's no budget for stipends. Also, if you give the benefits to everyone, there's no competitiveness. Hence, we decided to limit it to 25% so that the students are motivated to perform better,” said Garg at a recent press conference.

He also justified LDV rule change, claiming that it would allow more students from a village to avail the benefits of the scheme.

‘Defamed university’: CCS Hisar students protest

The decisions were opposed by several students, who wrote to the university authorities seeking their withdrawal. “The university’s annual budget is to the tune of Rs 900 crore, while the entire cost of stipends is merely Rs 9 crore. If they indeed wanted to enhance competitiveness, they could have increased the amount instead,” said Gurmeet Dhattarwal, one of the protesters who recently completed his doctorate at the university.

Dhattarwal alleged that after the students opposed the move, CCSHAU promised to form a panel to address the issue, but never did, resulting in the student agitation. He claimed that the university staff beat the students in front of top officials, including the VC and the registrar, even though their protest was peaceful.

Calling the assault “condemnable”, Garg informed that the university has suspended the assistant professor who got the students. “He didn't break the students' heads; he broke the university’s head. He has defamed the university. That's a big damage,” he said, adding: “We will strictly act against him.”

The professor, however, also put the blame on some “elements” with a “different” agenda for instigating students and causing “mischief”. While the students have blamed the authorities for threatening the students and teachers with disciplinary actions to break up the protest, the administration has in turn blamed the agitators for prohibiting their peers from taking tests and attending classes.

CCS Hisar VC: Appointment row, students’ ire

While the university claimed that it has met all of the students' major demands, they remain unsatisfied. Much of their ire is directed against Kamboj, the VC, whom they blame for ignoring the students' pleas and for endorsing the violence. They have asked for his immediate termination from the service.

Kamboj is no stranger to controversies. In 2023, a petition was filed before the Punjab and Haryana High Court challenging his appointment, with the petitioner claiming that he was given a “backdoor entry” despite not fulfilling the minimum 10 year experience as professor.

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After being given an extension of four years earlier this year – he was appointed as the head of the institute in 2000 – Kamboj faced scrutiny for favouritism from several Haryana lawmakers, as he was called a “blue-eyed academician” in the state assembly.

He was accused of dictatorial behaviour and irregularities and even linked to a woman scientist’s suicide. During the last year's Haryana assembly elections, the election commission had served him a notice for his presence at a BJP stage.

Accusing him of running a political agenda at HUA, Dhattarwal said, “The VC pledges allegiance to the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). He keeps inviting ministers to the university's many events. There are multiple Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) shakhas held in the institute,” he said.

The protest site is now attracting political leaders from the opposition Congress and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leaders, farmers’ unions as well as sports and cultural personalities, who have all voiced in the students’ support. However, the university has alleged that this is causing politicisation of the students' grievances and proving to be a hindrance in ending the deadlock.

“University administration condemns what happened with the students but we should now move on. There should be no politics as the students are here and they need to get their degrees. We will help them,” said Kamal Dutt Sharma, HAU’s Dean, PG Studies.