Mallikarjun Kharge speaks to protesting students of HAU, promises to raise their issue in Parliament

Chandigarh: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday extended support to the students of Haryana Agricultural University in Hisar who are protesting against the alleged assault by security guards on students who were holding a dharna to demand revocation of changes in scholarship rules. Kharge, who spoke to the students via video call, agreed to their request to raise the issue in the monsoon session of parliament.

He asked the students to continue their protest peacefully, assuring them, "We are standing behind you." The students had alleged that nearly 20 students were injured when university authorities cracked down on their peaceful protest against changes to the scholarship rules on June 10. At that time, the university administration had claimed that some students tried to enter the vice chancellor's office while raising slogans and also manhandled the guards. Later, some security personnel and an assistant professor were suspended in the wake incident.

On Tuesday, Congress general secretary Randeep Surjewala posted on X a video of Kharge's interaction with protesting HAU students. "Today, Congress National President, Shri Mallikarjun Kharge Ji spoke on a video call to the students of Chaudhary Charan Singh Agricultural University , Hisar, who were sitting on a peaceful protest and expressed concern over the discontinuation of scholarship, reduction of LDV seats and lathi-charge and hooliganism on students by the BJP government," Surjewala wrote on X in Hindi.

Scholarship changes at HAU

He said Kharge had invited the students to come to Delhi and explain in detail so that it could be raised in the Parliament as well. Meanwhile, in the video, Kharge, while speaking to a student, enquired whether the university has "stopped scholarship altogether or have they changed criteria".

The student replied, "Criteria have been changed and scholarship has been reduced to half. When students were raising their demand (recently) lathis were rained on them..." The student alleged that university authorities had lathi-charged the protesters. "Can this be done without the vice chancellor's order," Kharge asks. "You hold peaceful satyagraha, we are standing behind you."

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"Surjewala has also spoken to me about this (about students' protest). Whatever is possible at our level, we will do," Kharge assured the protesting students. The students told Kharge that they wanted their demand to be raised in the parliament. "When the session is held, we will definitely raise. You bring all the points to us about how it started. How many students used to get scholarships earlier and what criteria have been changed," said Kharge.

Kharge was told that students are also demanding the removal of the vice chancellor. The students of Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU), Hisar, have been protesting against changes in merit scholarship eligibility rules for postgraduate students.

The students claim earlier students securing 70 per cent or more marks (Overall Grade Point Average 7.0) were given a stipend, which has now been limited to only the top 25 per cent of students, regardless of OGPA. The students are holding an indefinite dharna in front of gate number 4 of the university.