NEHU Campus Tense as Students Boycott Classes Over Police Presence

The North Eastern Hill University Students’ Union (NEHUSU) has announced an indefinite suspension of classes in protest against the heavy deployment of police and CRPF personnel within the university's Shillong campus.

The protest, declared late Monday night, follows the deployment of over two platoons of police and a section of CRPF inside the campus after an alleged assault on Dr. Alok Singh, an assistant professor in the university's Hindi department.

The development has sparked widespread discontent among students, with NEHUSU demanding the immediate withdrawal of security forces. “We are calling for an indefinite suspension of classes until and unless the police personnel vacate the university premises. That is the ultimatum we are giving the state authorities,” said NEHUSU general secretary Toniho Kharsati, while addressing students after a tense three-hour standoff with magistrates and police.

Students have also appealed to district magistrates to relocate the security forces outside the university premises.

The police presence follows an FIR filed by Dr. Singh with the Mawkynroh police outpost. Acting on the complaint, police on Monday arrested NEHUSU president Sandy Sohtun. The FIR also names five other students allegedly involved in the incident. 

The situation on campus remains tense, with both administrative and student bodies on edge as negotiations continue.