Mild tension arose at Osmania University in Hyderabad on Monday as student activists protested against a new rule banning demonstrations on campus. The students demanded that the university withdraw the circular enforcing the ban.
In response to the planned protest, a large number of policemen were deployed on campus. Officers dragged several students from the historic Arts College and arrested multiple leaders from the Joint Action Committee, who had called for a strike against the university’s decision.
During the demonstration, students chanted slogans against the Vice Chancellor. Many of them gathered outside the Osmania University College of Arts and Social Sciences building. Videos showing students, including women, being forcibly removed by the police were widely shared on social media. A day earlier, the student organization Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) had also called for a strike.
Some protesters stated that since the Telangana Assembly sessions were ongoing, the State government should take a clear stand against the university’s circular. If the government remained silent, they believed it would indicate that it was involved in the decision.
Jeevan, a national executive member of ABVP and Telangana universities coordinator, said the protests would continue. He criticized the university’s decision, calling it undemocratic and a sign of dictatorship by university officials.
The controversial circular, issued on March 13 by the university’s Registrar, declared that protests and demonstrations were banned in university departments, colleges, centers, and administrative areas. The notice claimed that such protests were disrupting administrative work, using offensive language against university staff, and interfering with official duties.
On Sunday, university officials clarified that the order was not a complete ban on protests. They explained that demonstrations were only restricted in academic and administrative spaces to ensure smooth functioning. The university advised students to raise their concerns through proper channels instead of staging protests.
