YUVRAJ SIDDHARTH Vs. INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY GUWAHATI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr. O.P. Bhati, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. A.B. Dey, learned Standing counsel, IIT Guwahati.

(2.) Challenges made in this writ petition are the letter/order NO.IITG/SA/238/2023/140 dtd. 15/3/2023 issued by the Joint Registrar and HOS (Students Affairs) Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, whereby, studentship of the petitioner is terminated with immediate effect and order NO.IITG/SA/238/2023/328 dtd. 12/6/2023 whereby, the petitioner has been placed on academic suspension till June, 2024 with a fine of Rs.50,000.00 with a rider not to provide hostel facilities and to pay a fine within ten days from the date of receipt of the letter by modifying the order dtd. 15/3/2023 on appeal.

(3.) The case of the petitioner, shorn of unnecessary details, is that he is the student of 6th semester of Ph.D and Civil Engineering Department at Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IITG, in short). On 22/2/2023 at about 10.30 p.m., the petitioner along with his four friends namely, Vidya Bhusan, Chandra Mohan Shakya, Vivek Kumar and Mahendra Patel in Room No.B2-201 of Kameng Hostel, IITG, were listening music and having normal conversations, suddenly two Security Guards entered their room and started video recording of such moments without giving any warning and without the consent of the petitioner and his friends. On such unauthorized act of the said two Security Guards, one of the friends of the petitioner Shri Chandra Mohan Shakya requested them to stop such video recording. Upon such request, the said Security Guards pushed him and told by threatening to produce the said video to the Warden and higher officers. Then and there, the petitioner and his friends stopped the music and apologized to the Security Guards. It is contended that upon such request the language and behaviour of the Security Guards became more inappropriate and in the stair case while coming down, one of the Guards pushed one of the friend of the petitioner. By such sudden force, he came three to four stairs down. Thereafter, on the ground floor the said Security Guards again started abusing the petitioner, which led to physical confrontation. According to the petitioner, he did not take any part in such physical confrontation that he had only tried to pacify the Security Guards as well as his friends.