JNU allegedly refuses to accept Umar Khalid's PhD thesis

New Delhi, July 24: The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has allegedly refused to accept the the PhD thesis of student Umar Khalid, who has challenged the varsity's order to rusticate him over a 2016 incident. Monday was reportedy the last day for MPhil and PhD students to submit their thesis.

Khalid's PhD thesis on the Adivasis of Jharkhand has been signed by all authorities except the Chief Proctor and Finance Officer, reported Indian Express.

Along with Khalid, Aswathi Nair, who has done her PhD on Political Economy of the Transformation of Zimbabwe from 1980-2013, was also not allowed to submit her thesis. She had been slapped with a fine of Rs 20,000.

The Delhi High Court had on July 19 directed the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) to not take any coercive step against Kahlid, who was rusticated by the varsity, till the next hearing.

A JNU committee had earlier recommended rustication of Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya, former JNUSU leader Kanhaiya Kumar and two others in connection with a 2016 incident in the varsity campus. A Rs 10,000 fine was also imposed by an appellate authority of the university in connection with the incident in which anti national slogans were allegedly raised and Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru was glorified.

Khalid had earlier said that they were being "targeted in a systematic and a malafide manner by an enquiry that was prejudiced against us from day one".

Earlier, in May 2016, the Delhi High Court had stayed the disciplinary action taken against Kumar, Khalid, and Anirban Bhattacharya. In October 2017, the Delhi High court after setting aside the disciplinary action yet again had asked the university administration to look into the matter afresh and to allow students to submit evidence and present their side.