Why JNU students are protesting: Things to know

JNU students protest: Main points

The ongoing protest by the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) is largely over provisions in the Draft Hostel Manual.

Apart from the hostel fee hike, deadline for students to return to hostels and dress code were the major sticking points against which the university students were protesting.

On Wednesday, the JNU administration decided to partially roll back the hostel fee hike "only for students below the poverty line category" and removed the provisions for curfew timings and dress code from the draft. The decisions, including partial roll back of the fee hike, were taken at university's Executive Council (EC) meet.

No changes, however, were made in the hostel fee structure for BPL students who avail scholarships and for non-BPL students.

Changes made

After careful consideration, the EC had decided to do away with a few clauses in the Draft Hostel Manual that had drawn the ire of the students.

The one-time (refundable) mess security deposit for all categories of students was rolled back and the fee would now be Rs 5,500, instead of the proposed Rs 12,000.

Hostel timings

The draft hostel manual, which was approved by the Inter-Hall Administration Committee on October 28, had a clause which said, "The residents should be back in their respective hostels latest by 11.00 pm or by half an hour after time for library closing, whichever is later.

"Students who are found outside their respective hostel premises after the stipulated time and involving in any violence or otherwise disturbing the peace on campus and privacy of JNU community will be evicted from hostel forthwith apart from any other disciplinary action by the University."

Dress code

"All residents and guests should come to the dining hall appropriately dressed," the new manual had said. This too was done away with.

Service charges

Service charges of Rs 1,700 have been introduced and the one-time mess security fee, which is refundable, has been hiked from Rs 5,500 to Rs 12,000.

Hostel room rent

The rent for a single-seater room has been increased from Rs 20 per month to Rs 600 per month, while the rent for a double-seater room has been increased from Rs 10 to Rs 300 per month.

Viral Screenshots, CCTV Clips Being Checked To Find JNU Attackers: Cops

Viral Screenshots, CCTV Clips Being Checked To Find JNU Attackers: Cops

Furious JNU students have alleged the cops did nothing to reign in the brutal mob and stop the attack

New Delhi: Screenshots from social media posts that went viral and CCTV footage are being used to identify the masked goons who wreaked havoc across Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University late last night, Delhi Police said today. The cops, criticised over their response to an attack that left more than 30 injured, according to Delhi Police sources, filed a single FIR (first information report) this morning that includes "multiple complaints".

Delhi Police have also said the case has been handed over to the Crime Branch but no arrests have been made till now. The FIR has been filed under sections of the charges relating to rioting and damage of public property.

"We have received complaints from both sides and are investigating. We have registered an FIR and some people have been identified," Delhi Police said today, adding that identification of suspects was being done based on CCTV footage and screenshots from social media posts that have gone viral.

The police have said complaints have been received from both the ABVP (a student wing linked to the ruling BJP) and Left-backed student groups, each of which has blamed the other for the violence.

"We are verifying the details provided by these students," a police officer from Delhi's Vasant Kunj Police Station told news agency IANS.

According to IANS cops also detained four people near the North Gate of the university as they were allegedly trying to flee. "They are being interrogated ... credentials being checked," the officer said.

Furious JNU students, already at odds with Delhi Police over their role in last month's crackdown of Jamia Millia Islamia students protesting the controversial citizenship law, have alleged the cops did nothing to reign in the brutal attack.

"The police had been in the campus since afternoon, but they did nothing," Saket Moon, Vice President of the JNU Students Union, said after the attack.

A flag march was conducted by cops hours after the violence; they were met with furious students shouting "Delhi Police, go back". Students also alleged ambulances were stopped from entering.

However, Delhi Police say they "arrived on time and took control of the situation".

The cops were called in by JNU Registrar Pramod Kumar "to maintain order", according to news agency PTI. "This is the moment to remain calm and be on the alert. Efforts are already being made to tackle the miscreants," he added.

A day after masked goons armed with iron rods, sledgehammers and bottles barged into Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University and went on a brutal rampage, questions have been raised on the role of the police and on details that have emerged like the streetlights going off during the worst of the attack. Around 50 attackers in masks, carrying weapons, not just entered the campus but had a free run for three hours, unstopped by either the police or the administration.

Christmas Day Eclipse: How To Watch The ‘Ring of Fire’ Online | Solar Eclipse | World News

QINGDAO, CHINA - JANUARY 15: (CHINA OUT) The Annular Solar Eclipse occurs on January 15, 2010 in Qingdao, Shandong Province of China. The eclipse, which first became visible in Tamil Nadu city of Kanyakumari, is predicted to be the longest of its kind for the next 1000 years.

Fancy watching a dramatic solar eclipse to round-off Christmas Day? - World News

For sky-watchers, space fans and nature-lovers across the world, it’s two Christmases in one this year as a rare annular solar eclipse strikes the Middle East and Asia—and you can watch it all online.