IIT beef fest row: Students have rights, but they can't go berserk, says Madras High Court

While students have a right to protest, such rights must be exercised mindfully, the Madras High Court observed on Tuesday while disposing of a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed for setting up a 'peacekeeping committee' at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras, following incidents of violence that ensued after a 'beef fest' was organised on campus in 2017..A bench of Chief Justice SV Gangapurwala and Justice PD Audikesavalu observed that while one has a right to protest, such protests should be peaceful and in accordance with the law.The Court was hearing a PIL filed by former student and research scholar, Ditty Mathew and other students.A police report said that students too had resorted to lawlessness during the protests held after the 2017 incident, and that they had "squatted on roads, obstructing traffic".In light of this, the Court remarked, "They (students) have rights, but there is a way to exercise rights. It is true that students must be handled delicately, but at the same time, students can't be permitted to go berserk. It says here they were squatting on roads, obstructing traffic, being part of unlawful assembly." The Court found that six First Information Reports (FIRs) had been registered following an inquiry into the violence that followed the "beef fest" and that the cases were now pending before the trial court. The Court added that since the matter was pending before the trial court, it did not wish to make any comments on the merits of the case.It also refused to examine if any such committee was still needed or if any compensation had to be paid to the victims of the violence."You are asking for a Committee and action against some people. But what about you? Should action not be taken against the students who squatted on the roads, obstructing traffic, and breaking laws? The police report says the students were part of an unlawful assembly. Why should action not be taken against them (the protesting students)? They must have all passed out (graduated) by now," the bench remarked..The PIL was filed in 2017 by a group of students who were studying at IIT Madras at the time. The petitioners had called for the constitution of a committee comprising professors and headed by a retired High Court judge, to make suggestions to ensure that no incidents of violence recurred on campus. As per the PIL, some students made a Facebook post inviting their friends and batchmates for a "beef fest," which involved participants eating cooked beef dishes, and a discussion on the implications of the Union government's notification regulating the sale of cattle for slaughter. Around 50 people participated in the discussion and ate cooked beef and bread, the petitioners told the Court. Two days later, however, one of the participants was attacked by another group of students. The petitioners claimed the victim student sustained serious injuries and was hospitalised. They said while the attackers had been identified, no action had been taken by IIT..On Tuesday, the High Court noted that an affidavit filed by IIT and a police report submitted before the Court made it clear that action had been taken by the college management following an inquiry. The bench also observed that the police had registered FIRs into the case and that the process of law had already been set in motion."Six FIRs were registered. The trial court is hearing the matter. So we do not want to discuss the merits of the case or express our comments on it," the bench said.