Four years ago, Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya (MGAHV) in Maharashtra’s Wardha shifted two of its departments to its regional centre in Prayagraj, saying it would boost enrolment and that the transfer was being done in “lokhit” (public good). Today, the move at the university — the only one in India dedicated to the promotion of Hindi, with the language the primary medium of instruction — is at the centre of a three-month-long protest, leading to an FIR against six students.

Now, the students have reached out to the Cockroach Janta Party, with its convenor Abhijeet Dipke telling the media that asking for essential amenities cannot be a criminal activity. “The students are fighting for their Constitutional Right to Education.”

The protests began on July 3, when over 250 students signed a petition and submitted it to the administration, seeking the reopening of the two departments — Women Studies and Film Studies — as well as the restart of PhD admissions frozen since 2022, and the revival of language programmes. The protesters also want the university to reinstate its discontinued diploma and certificate courses, such as language programmes for English, French, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish and Urdu.

Story continues below.
Subscribe to see fewer ads.

A notice stuck to the door of hostel room of Rahul Kumar Thakur named in the FIR. The notice barred him from entering his room.

On August 20, the protesting students converged near the university’s administrative building. The same night, an FIR was filed against Rajesh Kumar Yadav, Ramchandra, Niranjan Kumar, Rakesh Ahirwar, Rahul Kumar and Shiv Pujan, on charges of wrongful restraint, obstructing a public servant and common intention.

As per the complaint, the students locked all entry and exit gates of the university, confining officials inside, and stopped Vice-Chancellor Kumud Sharma’s vehicle as she was leaving. The university also alleged that the students did not seek permission for the protest. Incidentally, the university came out with its rules concerning protests on August 31.

“The university’s Discipline Committee has recommended an independent inquiry, pending which six students/research scholars have been barred from entering the campus. The students will be given an opportunity to present their case,” the administration said in a statement to .

Officers at Wardha’s Ramnagar Police Station said the university has submitted photos and videos as proof. “We have given them a notice and let the students go. All of these are bailable offences, and we are not treating them as criminals,” a senior police official said. The police officials also informed that the university employees had to call on 112 (an emergency helpline) after the students locked the building.

Story continues below this ad

Students protesting at the protest site, Gandhi Putla Protest Site in Wardha.

The demands

Founded in 1997 as a Central University, Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya shifted two of its programmes in 2022 — all its Women and Film Studies courses — to its regional Prayagraj Centre.

According to faculty, the regional centre, one of three for the university, doesn’t have a full-fledged campus and has no facilities in Prayagraj. A notification ordering the move in 2021 said existing PhD students would continue to remain at the Wardha campus.

A year later, allegations of irregularities and ongoing litigation led to PhD admissions being frozen for the 2022-23 academic year. The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court allowed new admissions to resume in July this year, but admissions have started for the 2022-23 batch.

Story continues below this ad

When the departments were shifted, the university had over 16 students in Women’s Studies and 18 in Film Studies. The courses currently have a total of 14 students — seven students each for Film and Women’s Studies, both undergraduate and postgraduate courses. According to 2021-22 data, 15 students are pursuing PhD in both these courses — six in Film Studies and nine in Women’s Studies.

Meanwhile, the faculty — five teachers in Women’s Studies and Film Studies — were mostly based in Prayagraj.

For existing PhD students — who remained on the Wardha campus — this arrangement led to significant academic disruption.

“We thought the courses would run on both the campuses. But, over time, students figured out that the Wardha campus would not have these departments at all,” said Ramchandra, a PhD scholar of Women’s Studies since 2021-22 and one of the students facing the FIR.

Story continues below this ad

On the condition of anonymity, teachers admitted that the current arrangement makes little sense.

“Earlier, these courses had around 22 students each. But now, there are hardly four students in total,” said a teacher. Another one added: “For the film course, studios are locked because there’s no faculty. Existing PhD students suffer most: they tell us they want to study but don’t have the funds to travel (to Prayagraj).”

Students also accuse the university “of targeting students from outside Maharashtra”. The six students named in the FIR belong to Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

Vice-Chancellor Sharma accused students of creating “chaos” on August 20. While calling some of their demands “baseless”, she added: “Shifting departments back to Wardha would be a lengthy process as students have already been admitted in the new location.” On PhD admissions, she said the process would restart soon.