Students of the University of Hyderabad (UoH) staged protests on Tuesday against the Telangana government’s plan to develop a 400-acre land parcel adjacent to the university.
Gathering at the institution’s main gate, students raised slogans against the Congress-led state government. The University of Hyderabad Students’ Union (UoHSU) and allied student organizations, along with the ABVP, held separate demonstrations on campus.
UoHSU Vice President Akash demanded the immediate removal of police personnel and more than 50 earth-moving machines, accusing them of “razing down the forests” in the disputed land area. The union has declared an indefinite protest and a boycott of classes starting Tuesday.
In a joint statement, the UoHSU and associated student groups accused the university administration of “betraying” students by facilitating land-clearing activities for the state government. They also condemned what they called a “brutal police crackdown” on peaceful demonstrators. Protesters demanded a written assurance that the land would be officially registered under the university, along with the public release of minutes from the Executive Committee meeting on the issue.
ABVP UoH President Anil emphasized that the 400-acre land is home to diverse wildlife, including peacocks, deer, 230 bird species, and endangered animals. He vowed that ABVP would continue its fight to protect the ecosystem and hold the Congress government accountable.
Abhishek Kumar, a master’s student in communications, stressed that the issue is not just about land but also biodiversity. He criticized the presence of over 50 earth-moving machines, which he said were distressing the region’s wildlife. “The government should abandon its development plans for the sake of the environment,” he added.
Meanwhile, Union Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay Kumar, along with BJP MPs from Telangana, met Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in Delhi, seeking his intervention. According to a release from Sanjay Kumar’s office, the MPs urged Pradhan to take steps to protect the land and its biodiversity.
In Hyderabad, BJP MLAs Payala Shankar and others, who planned to visit the UoH campus, were detained at the MLAs’ quarters before being released. BJP MLA A Maheshwar Reddy claimed that police did not permit him to leave his residence and were not given any official notice explaining the restrictions.
The controversy escalated on Monday as student protests intensified, with the Telangana government maintaining that the 400-acre land belongs to the state, not the university. However, UoH Registrar disputed this claim, stating that the land’s boundaries had not been finalized.
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