Those three days,We enjoyed.We Played.We Participated and We Organised.But if good comes after bad,then cant bad expect its turn after good?The Colourful night of techNITi'09 gave way to the black.A black night.A night of an insult.A night of a slap.As the organisers were going for the dinner outside the campus after the closing ceremony of techNITi'09,Chief Warden and R****** S******,a faculty stifled them to do so.So they retreated back peacefully.
But then R****** S****** started to spit slang at their back.Hearing the cursing,the seniors stopped and came back to him to ask for the reason of such a slang for them.At this,R****** S****** lifted his hand,wafted in the air,pumped up adrenaline and Pacchallio!...A Slap.The sullen receiver of this slap was a 12th Passed Guest,Brother of a final year student who came to embrace the techfest.This incident triggered the revolt.Not able to disperse this incident as just another insult by the faculty,the students instigated the vengeance.
SMS flied.Calls spreaded.The Undergraduate underdog realized that the threshold has been crossed.At the midnight,the epoch-making started.The faculty with Director and Deans started to sweat,not knowing that they should save their sweat for the ensuing days.The protestors spended their night protesting at the Main Gate.At the first light of the sun,they started to burgeon coz the news was carried to all hostels.Girls came out of their haven to support.The Main gate was amazed to see such a gargatuan teeming for the first time in its history.
A din of opposition followed.First ever strike of NIT-J was under making. It started off with the Blocking of NH-1 just outside the campus for a jiffy.(We backed off coz we thought that we are fighting against NITJ administration and not the nation).The sullen students then reached for the staff quarters to assist the deaf hear. Envisaging that the peaceful protestors could turn into a tinderbox,the faculty called up the police.The heavy strident protest caused the faculty to come out of their hiding and open the mouth regarding the resignation of the involved faculty.
A Word from the faculty(Registrar,Acting Director:P* C******,S** M****** and few other dark luminaries) invited a thousand words from the students.Tacit,the talk was unsuccessful.Palpitating that its of no use to quibble,our leaders snatched a paper,took a pen and scribbled all the demands onto it which was then vouchsafed to the Registrar.The Police epitomising its legacy of being late came in afternoon but received a serious setback when the protestors turned them down by turning a deaf ear to them.
By the way,The Demands were:
1.Order of Suspension of the involved faculty(R****** S******,INE Deptt)
2.Ouster of Dr.SK Sinha from the post of Chief Warden.
3.Acquiesce the involvement of students before ordering any rule to be enacted.
After that on the next day,meetings were held in CSH.Slogans were casted.But no result.It seemed as if a deadlock have been clinched when on Tuesday(22th September,2008),a notice on the notice-board of Hostel-7(In which I live) caused a thousand rictus and took everyone by their breathe.It seemed like a game of Chess when we students on one side was check-mated by the side of the Administration.
The Notice signed by Registrar said:It is hereby declared that Institute will remain closed till 1st October 2009.
This stirred a strange consternation across the students coz due to holidays, there will be no strike possible. Two solutions found sense. The First: To go on Hunger strike and seduce plethora of media attention so that the administration is forced to accept all the demands or Second: To live a life of a Hedonist, Enjoy the Holidays, Shoot the breeze, Party Hard and then strike again on opening of College (5th October 2009).While the popular choice was to go for First Option, I with some other friends were severely and openly supporting the second one.
At night, a meeting followed in Hostel-6.A Hunger strike (Hence, Option 1) was declared to be enjoyed. I was disappointed.Lekin Koi Nahin; I thought I would support the seniors.
The Next day (Wed, 23th Sept) events were uneventful. Nothing happened. No Strike. No media.Nothing.In the afternoon, it came to be known that the seniors have decided to support the Second Option.Superb.After all, it was a nice decision. Happy faces were seen to depart for their home. I also joined those faces on Thursday,24th Sept.And now here I am compiling this article at my home in Ahmedabad.Hope that the denouement comes out in our favour...
