A protest march organized by the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) against the suspension of five students at the Central University of Keralam turned violent on Friday, prompting police to deploy water cannons to disperse demonstrators, police officials said.
The five students were suspended after a protest during a two‑day seminar on the 150th anniversary of the national song Vande Mataram, held on Oct. 6‑7. They had objected to the seminar’s conduct and to the presence of J Nandakumar, the national convener of an RSS‑linked organisation, at the event, and alleged that several registered students were denied entry.
Police later registered a case against 25 student leaders. The suspended students include SFI activists Sayed Ali S and Aved V B, MSF activists Shabeer and Taqiyuddin, and KSU activist Mohammed Yasin.
SFI activists marched toward the university campus on Friday, raising slogans against the suspensions. Police erected barricades to block access to the administrative block. When some protesters allegedly tried to climb over and pull down the barricades, officers used water cannons to disperse them. A large police contingent remains on site as authorities anticipate further protests.
