Rajasthan university suspends 33 Kashmiri students over protest against lack of approval for nursing course

On Thursday, The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association (JKSA) expressed "serious concern" over the suspension of 33 Kashmiri students from Mewar University in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan, after they demonstrated opposing the non, approval of the B.Sc. Nursing course in the university by the Rajasthan Nursing Council (RNC) and the Indian Nursing Council (INC).

National convenor of JKSA, Nasir Khuehami, said the absence of statutory recognition has placed the academic future of over 50 Kashmiri students enrolled in the programme in serious jeopardy. Without RNC and INC approvals, the validity of their degrees, professional registration, and future employment prospects remain uncertain. What should have been a matter of regulatory compliance has now turned into a full-fledged crisis for students, who invested their time, resources, and aspirations in the course, he said.

University Registrar Dr Chandikaditya Kumawat told The Indian Express, “There is a system when you’re in a university. And if you are creating a nuisance, then definitely, we have to suspend the students. We have not rusticated them, but suspended them. And whatever they are doing is not the correct way. What we have done is right; our NOC is under process, but delayed due to an administrative delay.”

“Our inspection went well, and our report was submitted through a proper process on the basis of which we will get the NOC; I don’t think there will be any issues in obtaining the NOC. I have been pursuing it regularly, and we are awaiting further orders. We are expecting that it will be approved within days of the completion of the ongoing Budget session,” the Registrar said, adding that the university gave admission to students “on the basis of the court orders”.

JKSA’s Khuehami said the university had repeatedly assured the students that the required approvals would be secured. In fact, the Registrar issued a written commitment last year, in which he promised that the problem would be solved soon. As a matter of fact, no substantial progress has been made despite these guarantees. The administration, instead of giving a clear picture or a definite timeline, keeps on asking for more time, thus students are left in a state of anxiety and uncertainty about their careers, he said.

He revealed that basically students had no option but to hold their breath for a very long time, and eventually, they went on a peaceful protest to save their academic future.

Instead of engaging with the students' legitimate complaints constructively, the university management has suspended 33 students, he said. The move to discipline students seems more like an attempt to quiet the dissenting voices, he indicated, rather than to remedy the mistake of the institution. In fact, by suspending students who raise genuine academic concerns, the university is only provoking them and deepening the distrust, he pointed out.

The association has also urged Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and his Jammu and Kashmir counterpart, Omar Abdullah, “to intervene and resolve this crisis”. It urged CM Sharma to ensure that either the necessary approvals are secured without further delay or the affected students are accommodated in a duly recognised institution, without any academic loss.