Over 179 professors, faculty, students, scholars, civil society organisations and citizens, including Zoya Hassan, professor Emerita, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi and Gopal Pradhan, professor, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar University, Delhi, have written an open letter to Azim Premji University (APU) seeking revocation of the suspension of students.

They have strongly condemned the “targeting of students by the APU administration” and have called upon the university to immediately revoke the suspension order and withdraw all punitive actions against the students.

They have also opined that such actions by the university will not only jeopardise the academic futures and well-being of the affected students but also undermine the university’s role as a space for critical inquiry, democratic engagement, and intellectual freedom. “University education has never been confined to the four walls of the classroom,” they stated.

The letter further states that equally important are the conversations, debates, and forms of collective engagement that take place on campuses beyond formal academic settings. “It is through such interactions that students cultivate critical thinking, develop a sensibility towards social justice, and learn the practices of democratic participation. While the students at APU may not have followed certain university-mandated administrative procedures, such lapses cannot justify punishments that are so severe. The students’ actions were part of the very intellectual and social engagement that universities are meant to foster. At a time when academic freedom in university campuses across India is being curtailed, it is imperative that university administrations defend, rather than suppress spaces for critical dialogue,” it added.

It can be recalled that on May 8, APU suspended a student for two years and issued a written warning to two others, following violent incidents on the campus on February 24, when members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad vandalised campus property and force-entered the premises protesting a student-led discussion on the Kashmir issue.