DU students smear cow dung on walls of principal's office as part of protest

NEW DELHI: Delhi University Students' Union president Ronak Khatri and some students smeared cow dung on the walls of the principal's office and washroom at Lakshmibai College on Tuesday. The act, according to the protesting students, was in response to what they called "absurd and unscientific" practices being encouraged on campus.

This incident follows on the heels of a video allegedly showing college principal Pratyush Vatsala applying cow dung on the walls of a classroom in "an attempt to counter the heat". Vatsala had clarified that plastering cow dung was part of a faculty-led research project.

In a video that quickly went viral on social media on Tuesday, DUSU president Khatri is seen confronting the college vice-principal since the principal was reportedly not present at the time. "If students have to sit in classrooms with cow dung on the walls, the principal should too," Khatri said, while smearing the walls.

Vatsala maintained that the students were her top priority and that she wasn't present when the incident took place. She added, "Our using cow dung was related to an ongoing study. When researching heat stress, it's essential to conduct trials on actual wall surfaces. The classroom used for this purpose is an old structure located on the second floor and is only used when no other classrooms are available. We often speak about adopting environmentally friendly, local solutions - and that's exactly what we aimed to explore. The substance we used was a carefully prepared mixture, not raw cow dung. What the DUSU president and his group applied, however, was simply cow dung."

DU vice-chancellor Yogesh Singh stated later that if it was indeed a scientific experiment, it should have been conducted in a designated or controlled area first, rather than in a space regularly used by students. "A scientific experiment should have been done privately. Why do it publicly? Try it at your home or in a controlled environment and observe the results," Singh said. He added, "There's a lot of science in traditional knowledge, but this isn't the right way to apply it. Otherwise, it becomes a laughing stock or looks like a publicity stunt. What was done in reaction was also not the right way to go about it."

NSUI national president Varun Choudhary also condemned the principal's actions. "The principal was appointed for academic duties," he said. "Her actions are a clear attempt to distract from real student issues - like scholarships, infrastructure and quality education."