New Delhi: As the hunger strike by the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) enters its fourth day, the standoff between the union and the administration intensifies over the demand to reinstate the JNU Entrance Examination (JNUEE) for PhD admissions, as well as a rollback of the university's decision to bar June 2025 UGC-NET aspirants.
The indefinite strike called by the union office-bearers continues even as Vice-Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit has said that the university's deans are not in favor of conducting the in-house test.
In an open letter dated June 26, JNUSU's President Nitish Kumar, Vice President Manisha, and General Secretary Munteha Fatima wrote to the Vice Chancellor of an assurance allegedly made during a 17-day hunger strike last August, to reinstate JNUEE for the 2025-26 academic session. They accused the administration of ignoring feedback from academic units and using excuses of "lack of funds" to stall the entrance test. The students argued this undermines equitable admissions and benefits ideological affiliates of the RSS and ABVP. They also expressed frustration at repeated refusals by the VC to meet them, charging that her insistence on having all four office bearers present was undemocratic.
Responding on June 27, Vice Chancellor Pandit stated that she had asked all deans last year to take responsibility for conducting JNUEE, but none provided any written commitment. "Many deans opted for NET and CUET instead," she wrote, citing their wider reach and improved participation of reserved categories. She noted, as a democratic head of the institution she had to respect their decision.
Denying the charge of apathy, the Vice Chancellor said she had met all four union members earlier, adding that for future discussions all four members of JNUSU should be present (referring to ABVP-affiliated JNUSU member). "JNUSU is a panel of four members, and anyone left out makes it undemocratic," she said.
In their response, the three protesting Left-affiliated JNUSU office-bearers questioned the VC's claim, arguing that several deans and chairpersons had in fact expressed support for JNUEE. The union maintains that the administration is unfairly shifting the responsibility for organising the exam onto the deans. They also demanded clarity on the Rs 5,000 per-student cost estimate for conducting JNUEE.
The union has written seeking a comprehensive meeting with university authorities, including representatives of the JNU Teachers' Association to address what they call a "fragmented" and "exclusionary" admission process.
While also rejecting the VC's insistence on the presence of the fourth union member-Joint Secretary Vaibhav Meena, who supports CUET/NET, and has not been part of their campaign.
Meanwhile, JNU has already opened its online PhD applications for the current academic year, with the submission window running from June 26 to July 7. Viva-voce rounds are scheduled for the end of July, and the first merit list is expected on August 11.
As the hunger strike at Sabarmati T-point continues, JNUSU president Nitish Kumar, Vice President Manisha, and General Secretary Munteha Fatima maintain that their protest would go on until the administration agrees to reinstate the JNUEE and engage in a wider, transparent dialogue on admissions policy.