Mangaluru: Students protest against daily fine for late fee payment at Sri Devi College
Mangaluru: A sudden protest broke out at Sri Devi College in Ballalbagh on Friday after degree students accused the college administration of imposing a fine of Rs 100 per day for delays in paying academic fees.
Students boycotted classes in the morning and gathered on campus to express anger against the management. They claimed that no such penalty clause was mentioned when they were admitted. “Now, the college is forcing us to pay a daily fine of Rs 100 for delayed fee payment and is even charging fines for attendance shortage,” students alleged.
They further said that students arriving after 10 am are not allowed to use the lift. “With classes being held on the sixth floor, we are forced to climb the stairs,” they complained.
The Students’ Federation of India (SFI) and the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) extended support to the students’ protest, terming the college’s action as unfair and against educational ethics. The organisations demanded that Mangalore University and the district administration take strict action against the college.
“The management is not only collecting excessive fines but also pressuring students to pay them. In a six-storey building, there’s only one toilet for every three classrooms per floor, used by over a hundred students. By the time they return from using it, the class period ends. The lack of sanitation facilities is also affecting attendance,” alleged SFI district secretary Vinuṣh Ramana and DYFI district secretary Santosh Bajal.
The two organisations warned that if students who protested are harassed or targeted, they will launch a larger agitation against the college management.
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Compromised PM didn't sign trade deal with US, but a bargain for Adani's release: Rahul
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of signing a trade deal with the US only to secure the "release" of billionaire businessman Gautam Adani.
"Compromised PM did not strike a trade deal, but a bargain for Adani's release," Gandhi said in a post in Hindi on X, after reports that the US has agreed to settle the lawsuit that accused Adani of hiding alleged bribery.
The US government has agreed to settle the lawsuit filed against Adani, who is accused of duping investors by concealing that his company's huge solar energy project in India was being facilitated by an alleged bribery scheme, according to court filings published Thursday.
Reacting to the reports, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said it was now clear why the PM agreed to the "hopelessly one-sided Indo-US trade deal that was really a steal by the US".
"And it is also clear why he abruptly halted Operation Sindoor on May 10, 2025, acting on President Trump's threats rather than on our national interest. Reportedly, the Trump Administration is about to drop all charges of corruption against Modani," he said on X.
"How much more compromised can the PM get?" Ramesh asked.
In the lawsuit filed in late 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission accused Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani, who is a director at the group's renewable energy unit Adani Green Energy Ltd, of agreeing to pay about USD 265 million in bribes to Indian government officials between approximately 2020 and 2024 to obtain lucrative solar energy supply contracts on terms that expected to yield USD 2 billion of profit over 20 years.
It was alleged in the lawsuit that Adani Group raised USD 2 billion in loans and bonds, including from US firms, on the backs of false and misleading statements related to the firm's anti-bribery practices and policies.
The ports-to-energy conglomerate had denied the allegations.
