JNU allows students to register without paying hiked hostel fees
New Delhi: Following a Delhi High Court order, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) administration on Monday allowed students to register for the current semester without paying the revised hostel feel and any late payment penalty. The move has created discontent among a section of the students who had registered earlier by paying the hiked hostel fee, with some of them saying that they should get a refund.
The Delhi High Court had on Friday allowed the remaining 10% students to register on the older fee rates, after the JNU Students Union (JNUSU) had moved court seeking withdrawal of the new fee structure. In a circular, JNU registrar Pramod Kumar on Monday said, “This is for the information of all concerned that the registration of students until Monday 3rd February 2020, will be without any late fine as per the decision of the honourable High Court dated during 24th January, 2020. In addition, the students registering during 24th January 2020 and 3rd February 2020 will not be charged the revised room rent of the hostels.”
JNUSU general secretary Satish Yadav said the students’ union has not called off its strike against the hostel fee hike yet. “We are registering for the winter semester. We will also appear in the final semester examinations to be held in the coming week. The strike is on hold to complete academic requirements. But we are determined to continue our movement demanding the registration of the JNU vice-chancellor [M Jagadesh Kumar],” he said.
Meanwhile, some students who had registered earlier and paid hiked fee, on Monday said they should be given a refund. An M Phil student at the School of International Studies, who asked not to be named said, “It’s unfair to students who had paid the hiked hostel fee while registering. The administration should make some provisions to return our money.”
As per the revised structure, the rent for a single room was ₹600 per month and ₹300 per month for a double-sharing room. However, under the old fee structure it was ₹20 and ₹10 for a single room and double-sharing room, respectively.
Durgesh Kumar, president of the RSS-affiliated ABVP unit in JNU, said their group was also waiting for the final judgment to be pronounced by the Delhi High Court on February 28. “We have also got many such complaints from students who had registered earlier. ABVP has always opposed the fee hike. We will raise the issue once the court delivers the final judgment,” he said.
Despite several attempts, the JNU registrar did not respond to calls and texts requesting comment.