New Delhi: A day after TOI reported that former JNUSU office-bearers had been fined up to ₹15,000 for staging a hunger strike, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on Saturday said the action was taken in response to students “unlawfully confining” staff inside the dean of students (DoS) office on March 18.In an official statement, the university said the outgoing JNUSU members led a protest over a perceived delay in student union elections and locked the main gate of the Inter Hall Administration building from outside, preventing staff from leaving for several hours. JNU alleged that during the protest, a female security guard was injured while the gate was being shut and locked. Later when the dean reportedly faced a medical emergency, the university claimed that students blocked medical personnel from entering the premises despite repeated requests.The administration also said that while the JNUSU election matter was sub judice, it had still notified the polls on March 11, subject to court directions. It added that the protest disrupted key administrative work at the end of the financial year and violated Delhi High Court orders prohibiting protests within 100 metres of academic or administrative buildings.
