Students go on hunger strike protesting against JNU admin’s decision to conduct online entrance exams

Eleven students, including Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union vice president Sarika Chaudhary, have gone on a hunger strike to protest against the varsity's decision to hold online entrance exams and several other issues.

The JNU said the registration for the online entrance exams is progressing rapidly with thousands of students registering within a few days of the portal being made public.

Demanding the vice-chancellor to take cognisance of the issues being raised by them, the students, including the JNUSU vice-president and former JNUSU president Geeta Kumari, started their indefinite hunger strike on Tuesday.

"We also hope that the Visitor of the university, the honourable President of India, urgently intervenes in the matter and calls the elected members of the JNUSU for a dialogue," the students' union said.

The decision to impose online examination to all courses, including MPhil and PhD, disregarding the opinions of the teachers and students who pointed to the problems of accessibility and pedagogical limits in having such an admission process is one of the issues the students' union wants a discussion on.

The other issues include the decision to delink the integrated MPhil-PhD program without any deliberation or discussion in the academic council meeting and the decision to do away with BA second year admission.

The JNUSU also demanded that VC M Jagadesh Kumar be removed.