Over 2,100 students vote in favour of VC's resignation in JNUSU referendum
New Delhi (PTI): Over 2,100 students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) voted in favour of Vice Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit resigning in a referendum conducted by the JNUSU, the results of which were released by the student union on Wednesday.
Addressing a press conference, the president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) Aditi Mishra said, "A total of 2409 students cast their votes in the referendum. 2181 students (90.54 per cent) voted against the continuation of the Vice Chancellor in JNU, as in more than 90 per cent of the students who voted think that the VC should resign, following the casteist remarks she has made."
Declaring the results of the referendum, Mishra added that 207 students (8.59 per cent) voted in favour of the VC's continuation and 21 votes (0.87per cent) were invalid.
The JNU administration did not immediately respond to PTI's queries regarding the matter.
The student union has also announced that a public hearing of the vice chancellor will be held next week, where retired judges, lawyers, academicians and activists are being invited.
"The public hearing will be held on March 16-17, where we will come with a charge sheet, detailing the VC's corrupt acts," Mishra added.
The university and the students' union have been at loggerheads over multiple controversies. The campus has witnessed continued protests since early February after the university suspended four JNUSU office-bearers, along with former JNUSU president Nitish Kumar, for two semesters.
The suspensions were issued for "extensive damage to university property" during a November 21, 2025, protest at the Dr B R Ambedkar Central Library.
The incident was followed by further protests demanding the revocation of the suspension order, clashes between left- and right-wing student groups, and alleged casteist remarks by the JNU vice chancellor that drew major backlash from a section of the students' as well as teachers' bodies.
Following the same, the JNUSU conducted a referendum on Tuesday across all schools of the university, asking students "whether the vice chancellor should continue in office in light of her casteist remarks and the ongoing administrative corruption".
"The referendum clearly reflects the overwhelming sentiment of the student body. The students of JNU have delivered a decisive democratic mandate demanding accountability and the resignation of the vice chancellor. JNUSU reiterates its demand for the immediate resignation of the casteist vice chancellor.... calls upon the Ministry of Education to take cognisance of the democratic voice of the students," the student union said in a statement on Wednesday.
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EC hands over probe into gherao of seven judicial officers in Bengal's Malda to NIA
Kolkata (PTI): The Election Commission of India on Thursday handed over the probe into the gherao of the seven judicial officers in West Bengal's Malda district to the NIA, following a Supreme Court directive.
Observing that West Bengal was the "most polarised state", the Supreme Court delivered a stinging indictment of the state administration after seven judicial officers engaged in SIR exercise were held hostage by protesters in Malda district and directed a CBI or NIA probe into the incident.
In an April 2 letter to the National Investigating Agency, the poll body referred to the apex court's order and directed it to probe the Wednesday incident.
Talking to PTI, a top official of the poll body said the NIA team would reach West Bengal on Friday.
Slamming the state administration for its "complete failure" and inaction over the "deplorable" gherao and attack on the officers during the Special Intensive Revision(SIR) of the voters list, the court also asked the EC to "requisition adequate Central Forces and deploy them at all places where judicial officers are adjudicating the objections".
West Bengal will have a two-phase poll -- on April 23 and 29.
The Supreme Court further said the incident was a "brazen attempt not only to browbeat the judicial officers" but also amounted to a challenge to the authority of this Supreme Court.
The top court gave the order after it took suo motu cognisance of a letter from the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court detailing a harrowing night where the judicial officers, including three women and a five-year-old child, were held captive by a mob for over nine hours without food or water.
The incident occurred during the SIR exercise in the Kaliachowk area of Malda district, and as per the order, seven judicial officers were gheraoed by "anti-social elements" at a BDO office starting at 3:30 PM on Wednesday.
The officers were rescued by security forces around midnight on Wednesday after they were gheraoed over the alleged deletion of names from the electoral rolls, officials said.
