ATSUM serves 48 hr ultimatum to MU authority

IMPHAL | Aug 29

All Tribal Student Union, Manipur (ATSUM) served 48 hours ultimatum to the Manipur University authority demanding to follow the High Court directives and the Central Educational Institution Reservation Act, 2012 in the admission process.

Speaking to media persons at ATSUM office located at Adimjati complex today, ATSUM general secretary Seiboi Haokip demanded that the admission process should be put in abeyance until such time and the results declared for the academic season 2017-2018 are rectified to the guidelines and reservation norms of the government.

“Peeved at the brazen defiance of the Manipur University authority for its failure to comply to the directives of the High Court of Manipur and the Central Educational Institution Reservation Act, 2012, with regard to the admission process”, ATSUM warned the authority to change within 48 hours failure which the students union will intensify agitations.

Articulating its strong opposition to the perpetual defiance on the part of the MU authority since the up-gradation of Manipur University to the central university, Seiboi said ATSUM and University Authority has signed MoU on November 7, 2016 where both party agreed to adhere central education institution (reservation in admission) act which stipulates 31 percent reservation for the Schedule Tribe which subsequently culminated ATSUM’s month long agitation.

But the recent announced admission lists in the various departmental entrance test results explicitly indicates that most of the departments except Economics and English departments has overtly defied the central act as well as failed to honour the spirit of MoU signed between ATSUM and MU authority, Seiboi said.

Further, the Manipur University authority shall solely be held culpable for all loss of academic days in the event of an agitation unleashed by ATSUM, he added.

MUTSU closed down MU A-block

Meanwhile, irate tribal students of Manipur University locked down Manipur University administrative block in the afternoon demanding to put admission process in abeyance till their demands is made.

Later, police intervene and brought the situation under control.

On the other hand, Manipur University Tribal Students Union (MUTSU) demanded the MU authority to declare null and void of all the recently held admission test results alleging that the results is defied the High Court order of August 21, 2017.

In a statement, MUTSU general secretary T. Kailen Haokip alleged that MU have been deliberately discriminating and depriving the tribal students’ rights in the admission reservation since the inception of MU into central university since 2005.

Kailen Haokip demanded that the tribal students should get 31 percent reservation in admission out of the total intake, but MU authority had once again manipulated the quantum of reservation by giving only 20/21/22 percent out of the total intake.

MUTSU appealed to the higher authorities and MU authority to deliver justice to the tribal at the earliest.

Further, MUTSU called tribal civil organisations, human rights, students’ bodies and others to support their demands to deliver justice.