Lucknow: Dalit PhD Scholar Basant Kannaujiya's Dharna Continues at BBAU, University Now Issuing Warnings to Supporter Students

Lucknow – The peaceful dharna by Dalit research scholar Basant Kannaujiya at Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU) has entered its second week, as he continues to protest his expulsion on charges of 'indiscipline.' In a escalating crackdown, the university administration has begun issuing warning notices to students supporting him, prompting accusations of stifling dissent. Prominent Bahujan activists, including Nagina MP Chandrashekhar Azad, have rallied in solidarity, demanding the immediate revocation of the expulsion order and an impartial probe.

This episode marks yet another dark chapter in BBAU's history of alleged caste-based discrimination and administrative authoritarianism. Kannaujiya, a PhD scholar in the Department of History under the Ambedkar School of Social Sciences, has been enrolled at the university for the past 14 years. He was implicated in the unrest on September 17, where an Inquiry Committee of senior professors accused him of inciting student mobs, vandalism, and unauthorized entry into the Vice Chancellor's office after breaching a channel gate. The Disciplinary Committee, reviewing CCTV footage, student statements, and his prior record-including 14 instances of misconduct since 2012, multiple show-cause notices, and FIRs, recommended expulsion during meetings on October 7 and 9.

Vice Chancellor Raj Kumar Mittal dismissed Kannaujiya's response to a show-cause notice dated October 17, as unsubstantiated and issued the expulsion order on November 19. The directive not only removes him from the university with immediate effect but also bars him from entering the campus or applying for future admissions. In his defense, Kannaujiya has maintained that he was merely engaging in welfare discussions with officials and has a 13-year history of non-violent advocacy for student rights.

Undeterred, Kannaujiya launched a constitutional sit-in protest right after the expulsion, now in its eighth day, stationed outside the main gate of the administrative building. He is demanding justice, the right to education, and an end to caste discrimination on campus. However, the administration's response has intensified: Notices have been served to participants in the dharna. Instructions have been sent to all department heads prohibiting any student or researcher from joining Kannaujiya's movement.

The latest incident involves Shivam Kumar, a student from the Department of Information Technology. On November 21, the Proctor's Office issued Letter No. 1084/Proct./BBAU/2025, a stern warning for "continuously engaging in indisciplined activities." The letter states: "It has been observed that you, in collusion with external elements, have been participating in a dharna-demonstration since November 20, 2025, at the main gate of the administrative building inside the university campus. This is causing obstruction to the movement of teachers, officials, and staff entering or exiting the administrative building, as well as spreading unrest on the campus. Such acts constitute a gross violation of the university's student code of conduct."

It further warns: "You are hereby directed to immediately desist from such indisciplined activities and focus on your academic pursuits. Due to your involvement in indisciplined activities, you may be penalized as per university rules." According to Kannaujiya, similar notices are now targeting other supporters, amounting to psychological harassment. He questions: "Is this democracy? Is this the university run in Babasaheb's name?"

In a viral social media post, Kannaujiya has exposed what he calls the administration's "tyranny." He wrote: "Another shameful example of administrative dictatorship! In a university with 50% reservation for Dalit students and 51 Dalit professors, Dalit researchers and students face the most caste-based persecution. I have been expelled on false charges of indiscipline, and I am sitting on a peaceful dharna within constitutional bounds to protect my rights to justice and education. But now, the administration has issued notices even to students who merely stood in my support. All department heads have been ordered that no student or researcher should join Basant Kumar Kannaujiya's movement. This clearly shows that the administration fears dissenting voices and is trying to suppress students with a casteist mindset. Now, another student supporting me has received a notice, and mental harassment has begun. Can injustice's voice be silenced by notices? We are on the path of the Constitution, and the struggle will continue."

The controversy has taken a political turn. Nagina MP Chandrashekhar Azad has vocally backed Kannaujiya. "Expelling a Dalit student after 14 years of hard work and intimidating his supporters in a central university like BBAU is intolerable. This is an open display of casteism. We demand the Government of India and the Ministry of Education intervene immediately, conduct a fair investigation, and revoke the expulsion order," Azad stated.

Other Bahujan activists including Apni Janta Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya declaring it a conspiracy against the entire Dalit-Bahujan community. Supporters have called for action against the Vice Chancellor, Proctor, and implicated professors, warning of a campus-wide movement if the expulsion isn't withdrawn.