Cops picked up 8 from hostels on Wednesday night.
An RTC bus was damaged at Shivam Road by activists who opposed the beef festival organised at the Osmania University (Photo: Deccan Chronicle)
Hyderabad: Students have accused the Hyderabad Police of excessive intervention within the Osmania University after cops picked up eight students from hostels on Wednesday night.
E. Arunank, one of the organisers of the beef festival and student of the Law College, who was picked up along with five others from Triveni hostel at around 11:30 pm on Wednesday night said, “The police barging into the university hostel at night and taking us to the police station is condemnable. It is sad that on International Human Rights Day the police is violating human rights. The High Court order, based on which the police picked us up and arrested others, was to follow an earlier ruling in a civil court regarding the beef festival which had just said to maintain status quo. Nowhere did it mention that students could be picked up at night or arrested.”
Another student, Stalin, added, “RSS is allowed to conduct shakhas in front of Arts College but the university and police have a problem when beef is served on campus. Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated for 10 days by students during which non-vegetarian food is not allowed in hostels. This exposes the university’s right wing agenda.”
Students also differ from the popular belief among the university’s staff that since the beef festival was not an academic affair it should not be conducted in the university.
Some students of a Left organisation even tried to debate with some faculty members on how conducting beef festival at the OU campus lends them a voice.
Cops ensure students don’t leave hostels
Police ensured that none of the students living in hostels where the festival organisers stayed stepped out of their rooms.
Mussavir Mohammad, one of the organisers at Ambedkar hostel said, “The police arrested anyone who stepped out of the hostel regardless of whether the student was an organiser or not. Even mess workers were not allowed into the hostel to prepare dinner.”
The pork festival too was not allowed to take place which was to be conducted at Arts College on Thursday. Solanki Srinivas, the organiser, was arrested on Wednesday evening.
OU registrar Prof E. Suresh Kumar said, “University was peaceful and I thank the police for upholding court orders.”and not allowing any untoward incident to take place in the university."
Outside the university campus too there was high drama as groups of people belonging to Hindu organisations shouted “Jai Sri Ram” slogans and made sporadic appearances near the NCC gate.
While the police detained a few, others escaped. In one incident a cow was brought near the gate to conduct “gau puja” but that effort too was thwarted.
All entrances to OU were sealed for outsiders and police were deployed to ensure that only those with university identity cards were allowed to enter.
As per sources, only students who had exams were allowed to move about subject to scrutiny. While a final semester theory exam which was to be conducted in the Technology department was cancelled, exams in the Engineering College were conducted peacefully.
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( Source : deccan chronicle )
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