The Tamil Nadu government has withdrawn its controversial directive asking authorities to prevent school and college students from participating in protests organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and Left-wing parties, barely a day after the order was issued.
The directive, issued by the Directorate of Collegiate Education (DCE), had called for coordinated action involving the School Education Department, Higher Education Department, police and district administrations to stop students and young people from taking part in such protests.
Schools and colleges were also asked to submit an action-taken report to the government by August 20.
The move drew sharp criticism, particularly from the CJP.
CJP’s national co-convener Saurav Das described the order as “unconstitutional”, “illogical” and “irrational”, and called for its immediate withdrawal.
The government eventually reversed course on Wednesday.
In an order issued by Joint Director of Collegiate Education Cynthia Selvi P, the department said its earlier communication dated August 17 had been withdrawn. The order was addressed to principals of government arts and science colleges across Tamil Nadu.
The timing of the directive had also attracted attention as the CJP had begun its ‘School Thik Karo’ campaign from August 15, with Gen Alpha students staging protests over education and school-related demands in different parts of the country.
The controversy comes against the backdrop of growing student-led protests over education and examination-related issues.
The CJP had spearheaded a month-long student agitation at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar over alleged examination paper leaks and irregularities.
The protests later escalated, with violence reported during a march towards Parliament on July 20, when tear gas and water cannons were used to disperse demonstrators.
The issue has also taken on a political dimension in Tamil Nadu. The Left parties had extended unconditional outside support to Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in June to help the party form the government after it emerged as the single-largest party in the Assembly elections but fell short of a majority.
With the government now withdrawing the directive, the immediate confrontation over restricting student participation in protests has been defused.
The U-turn, however, has brought renewed attention to the Tamil Nadu government’s approach to student activism and political demonstrations.
