When millions of students face broken testing systems, leaked question papers, and police crackdowns, you expect the country's top intellectual hubs to speak up. Instead, places like the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) stayed quiet.
Why did India's elite universities fall silent during one of the most intense student agitations in recent memory? Also making headlines in this space: Why United Nations Chief Guterres Says Digital Platforms Are Fueling Global Hate Speech.
Let's look at what actually happened. Activist Sonam Wangchuk undertook a multi-week hunger strike at Delhi's Jantar Mantar. He was protesting catastrophic exam scandals, including the widespread leaks affecting the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG). Students were sleeping on streets, dealing with tear gas, and facing pellet guns. Yet faculty senates and alumni associations across top-tier technical and management institutions offered absolute quiet.
That silence wasn't neutral. It was a calculated retreat. More insights into this topic are covered by TIME.
The Cost of a Compromised Future
You cannot talk about this crisis without looking at the human toll. When exams get canceled or leaked after months of intense prep, the pressure breaks young minds. Reports documented multiple student suicides linked directly to the anxiety of exam chaos. Families protested. Young aspirants demanded basic accountability from the education ministry.
When Sonam Wangchuk sat on his fast to demand systemic reforms and the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, the agitation grew. Police moved in. Plainclothes officers detained protesters, and authorities deployed tear gas and pellet guns against teenagers.
Think about that for a second. Students fighting for fair entrance exams were met with military-grade crowd control tactics.
And what did the elite campuses do? They didn't defend testing integrity. Instead, institutions like IIT Roorkee and Delhi University issued strict advisories and gag orders. They threatened students with disciplinary actions, warning them to stay off the streets and avoid sharing unverified information online.
The Myth of Institutional Neutrality
Some defenders argue that universities should remain neutral. They point to classic academic freedom frameworks, claiming schools shouldn't take political sides.
That argument fails right here.
An entrance exam isn't an abstract geopolitical debate. It is the literal gatekeeper to these elite institutions. When the credibility of admissions collapses, the foundation of the university cracks too. If IITs and IIMs depend on the validity of national testing to choose their incoming classes, ignoring a systemic exam failure isn't neutrality. It's self-preservation of the worst kind.
Universities rely heavily on central government funding, accreditation, and state goodwill. Over time, caution turns into complete compliance. When administrations prioritize protecting their budgets and administrative comfort over the safety of their student body, autonomy dies a quiet death.
What Happens When Campuses Go Mute
When universities stop defending their students, the power dynamic shifts permanently. Young people learn a harsh lesson. They realize that their institutions care more about PR management than justice.
Campus leaders think staying quiet keeps them safe from political blowback. Honestly, it just makes them irrelevant. If the places designed to cultivate critical thinking and civic courage refuse to speak up when youth are beaten for demanding honest exams, what are they even for?
Autonomy isn't stripped away overnight. It gets traded away voluntarily, one silent administration at a time, until nothing is left to defend.
