- Jamia administration approved student union elections.
- JMISU dissolved in 2006, now set for revival.
- University has rich history of student activism, protests.
Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi has witnessed intense protests over the past two weeks, with students demanding the revival of the Jamia Millia Islamia Students' Union (JMISU), which was dissolved in 2006. On Monday, the administration approved the demand and ordered union elections to be held within 15 days of the union's constitution being ratified. Historically, Jamia has served as a vital focal point for student activism and political movements in India, experiencing several major waves of protests over the years.
Here is a list of episodes when student protests broke out:
Anti-CAA and NRC Protests (2019):Students of Jamia organised a protest against the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Over time, the protest escalated into heavy clashes. Delhi Police entered the university campus without permission from the administration, deploying tear gas and conducting a severe lathi (baton) charge inside the university library and reading rooms.
The incident left dozens of students severely injured and sparked nationwide solidarity protests across dozens of other Indian universities. The Anti-CAA protest became a defining flashpoint for civil rights movements at the time.
The "Show Cause" and Attendance Protests (2019): Days before the CAA protests, the campus saw an intense 9-day sit-in protest. Students agitated against the administration for issuing a show-cause notice to a student who had participated in a peaceful protest against an invitee to a campus event. The protest concluded after the administration agreed to withdraw the disciplinary actions.
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The Israel Partnership Protest (2019): Students at Jamia Millia Islamia protested in October 2019 against the inclusion of Israel as a country partner in the "Global Health Zenith Confluence ’19" event organised by the Faculty of Architecture and Ekistics.
University proctorial staff intervened, and the administration subsequently issued show-cause notices to five students (including members of the Left-backed All India Students' Association - AISA) for allegedly disrupting campus functioning and damaging property. The Faculty of Architecture and Ekistics later clarified that there was no official institutional collaboration with Israel and that the event's promotional materials were not formally prepared by the faculty
Disciplinary Actions & "Remembrance Day" Protests (2024): The agitation occurred as a major pushback against restrictive administrative memorandums banning campus protests, political slogans, and unauthorised posters.
The 2006 Student Union Disbandment Unrest (2006): Violent clashes among student factions and disruptions to academic functioning led the university administration to indefinitely dissolve the elected Jamia Millia Islamia Students' Union, a decision that has remained a central flashpoint for student agitation nearly two decades later and then culminated into a new agitation.