A Delhi University student on Tuesday, 8 February, allegedly attempted self-immolation on the second day of protests over the resumption of offline classes.
Kamal Tiwari, a first-year student of MA in Buddhist Studies, allegedly doused himself in petrol and set himself on fire during the protest. Tiwari is also an activist of Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), the youth wing of the Aam Aadmi Party.
Even as the protests continued for the third day, the decision on restarting offline classes is likely on Wednesday, 9 February. According to reports, the colleges are expected to open for physical classes in the third week of February.
Aftab Alam, CYSS leader and a friend of Tiwari, said that he was taken into police custody and is now under observation at the Hindu Rao Hospital. He is in a stable condition, Alam told The Quint on Tuesday.
Tiwari is one of the thousands of DU students who had boycotted online classes and demanded that the varsity's vice-chancellor Yogesh Singh reopen the campuses. He has been vocal about the issues of online classes on Twitter.
Alam said, "Kamal has been depressed for some time now because universities have been shut for two years. He has been having such thoughts for a while and he suddenly took a step in that direction today."
He added,
"He did this in public and the DU VC paid no heed to it. Do only the rich deserve an education? Aishwarya, an LSR student, died by suicide due to the same reason."
Alam said that lakhs of students were in the same situation and that many students could not even afford a mobile recharge.
A student body at DU issued a statement, which read, "The students of University of Delhi stand in solidarity with Kamal Tiwari and his struggle and tears represent that of whole University [sic]."
DU Students Union Begins Hunger Strike
Meanwhile, the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) on Tuesday began an indefinite hunger strike on the issue, claiming that students are participating in the strike in large numbers.
Student organisation AISA said that the protests would continue until a notice on offline classes was released.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)