HRD Min says IIT-Madras took action as per guidelines

HRD Ministry today said that IIT Madras had taken action against a students group according to its own procedure and established guidelines.
Higher Education Secretary S N Mohanty said IIT Madras is an autonomous institute and has taken action within its law and the ministry had got nothing to do except forwarding the complaint and seeking comments from the institute.
"IIT, Madras has taken action as per their own procedure and institute's guidelines. IITs being autonomous institutions, they are competent to handle matters within their guidelines and procedure," an official statement issued by the Ministry said.
"IITs being autonomous institutions, they are competent to handle matters within their guidelines and procedure," it said.

IIT Madras was at the centre of controversy over derecognition of the students group, many of whom are Dalits, following a complaint that it was critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In Assam, HRD Minister Smriti Irani backed IIT's action, saying the institution has clearly stated that some procedures by the students' organisation were not followed and it knew that the Dean will derecognise it for violating norms.

Officials in the ministry said the Ambedkar-Periyar Study Circle (APSC) can take the recourse of putting its case across to the students council of IIT Madras even as it has violated guidelines.

They said there was "no objections" to the agenda of the meeting per se but for the fact that it violated guidelines in using the name of IIT Madras. The meeting was not attended by any faculty member as mandated.
Last year, the premier technical institutes had also courted controversy over reports that non-vegetarian food had been taken off menu in some of these institutes including IIT Delhi.
The controversy had triggered after the HRD Ministry had forwarded a letter of a grain trader in Katni in Madhya Pradesh to the IITs, who accused the IITs of giving 'kusanskar' or "bad culture of the West to students through food".

Irani had, however, in Parliament dismissed the allegations that they were promoting vegetarian food in IITs, contending that such meals were stopped during UPA rule, much before she assumed charge.