Azim Premji varsity students, faculty join CAA protest

On Thursday, dissent against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) deepened within academia as the students and faculty of the Azim Premji University joined the growing opposition to the law.

A protest was held at the undergraduate campus of the Azim Premji University, School of Arts and Sciences, near Sarjapur from 12 noon to 5 pm. The organisers said about a hundred persons, comprising students and faculty took part in the event.

Elizabeth Thomas, a senior student, said she joined the protest because she regarded the CAA as divisive.

“I thought it was important to protest because we are at a stage when our national and individual identities as Indians will be determined by these legislations,” 23-year-old Elizabeth said.

The protest was organised and conducted entirely by students of the university, and the administration had no ties with it, a statement from the organisers read.

IIMB joins in

Meanwhile, 268 faculty and students of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bangalore signed a statement of solidarity condemning the January 5 attack on students at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi.

“The systematic way in which the universities have been targeted to silence ideological dissent is not acceptable under any terms. The attack on JNU faculty and students is an anathema to these principles and violence is an attack on the foundation of India.

“We condemn it in the strongest possible sense and stand in solidarity with JNU,” the statement read.

It added that the signatories had endorsed the statement in their personal capacity.