The row over suspension of 16 SFI activists at Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit in Keralam | Explained
The SFI activists were suspended on August 13 during the first meeting of reconstituted Syndicate amid protests the university says included a mock funeral for Vice-Chancellor Ciza Thomas; the action has sparked a legal battle as students sought to sit for upcoming exams, while authorities defended disciplinary measures and demanded an apology
A protest march organised by People’s Protection Committee to the Kalady campus of the Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit in Keralam against the positions taken by the Vice-Chancellor and the State Education Minister
Sixteen students affiliated to the Students Federation of India (SFI) were suspended in connection with a protest to press their various demands while the first meeting of the re-constituted Syndicate of the Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit (SSUS) was under way at the main campus in Kalady, Ernakulam, Keralam on August 13, 2026. The incident became controversial after the university authorities alleged that the protesters staged a mock funeral of Vice-Chancellor (V-C) Ciza Thomas. The FIR filed by the Kalady police stated that the accused allegedly manhandled and defamed the V-C and damaged her car. The State leadership of the SFI, however, rejected the allegations and pointed out that the students of the Department of Theatre had staged a symbolic protest to highlight the damaged lighting equipment used by them as part of their studies.
A Syndicate meeting held on November 2, 2026 decided to permit conditional withdrawal of the suspension of 12 out of the total 16 students once they submitted an unconditional apology stating that they will not breach the disciplinary norms in the future. The SFI activists said they will not tender any apology and started an indefinite relay fast demanding unconditional withdrawal of the suspension orders. A legal tussle emerged after a Single Bench of the Kerala High Court allowed the suspended students to write the semester examinations beginning on November 4, 2026. But the Division Bench of Justices Anil K. Narendran and S. Muralee Krishna allowed a petition filed by the V-C and the Syndicate against the Single Bench order on November 3, 2026. The court noted that the students had sought to appear for the examinations without filing an application to condone shortage of attendance. The aggrieved students have now approached the Supreme Court seeking relief.
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