HYDERABAD: A section of students at the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR), Hyderabad, has urged the university to reconsider inviting Chief Justice of India Surya Kant as chief guest for its upcoming convocation, citing concerns over his reported remarks during the hearing on alleged police excesses against ‘Chalo Sansad’ protesters at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.TOI has learnt that at least six separate representations have been submitted to the university administration by students from different cohorts, with each letter seeking reconsideration of the proposed invitation.NALSAR has traditionally had the CJI deliver the convocation address. The convocation date for the batch of 2026-27 has not been finalised yet, students said.In the first representation submitted on July 23 to the vice-chancellor, registrar, professors and the administration, students cited the CJI’s reported remarks during the hearing, including his response to an offer to show videos of the alleged police action: “We are not interested in videos; we don’t have time to watch.” It also quoted him as telling the counsel: “Don’t waste our time, and don’t waste your time”.Referring to the remarks, the students stated: “A convocation is meant to be a moment where the University’s own values, including a commitment to constitutional rights, access to justice, and reasoned engagement with grievances, are visibly reflected in the choices it makes. We feel that receiving our degrees from a dignitary whose recent public conduct, as reported, appears dismissive of serious allegations of police brutality against protesting citizens sits uncomfortably with what we have been taught to value during our time at NALSAR.”Five subsequent representations from different batches expressed support for the concerns raised in the original letter and urged the university to consider the objections before finalising the chief guest.Speaking to TOI, students said that they have not received any response from the university so far. Even TOI’s repeated attempts to reach the vice-chancellor, Srikrishna Deva Rao, failed. The institute’s registrar, meanwhile, said he had no knowledge of the representations.Students claimed that the representations were backed by hundreds of students at the institute. “Each representation has been signed by 70 to 80 students — putting the combined number at roughly 350 to 450,” claimed a student. The figures could not be independently verified by TOI.“We respect the CJI’s position. But we have been taught the Constitution and constitutional values, and we don’t want to support something that goes against those values,” the student, who is also a part of the Student Bar Council, said. Another student, quoting from the initial letter, added: “We request the university to strongly reconsider this choice of chief guest for this convocation…We are open to discussing this further with the administration in whatever manner is convenient, whether through a meeting with student representatives or through any other channel the university considers appropriate.”
