St Stephen’s Bars 54 Students; Students Allege Harassment, Unfair Attendance Rules

Last Updated:June 12, 2025, 20:46 IST

St Stephen’s barred 54 students from exams over attendance; students allege harassment, unfair rules, and denial of chance to explain genuine absences.

Delhi’s St Stephen’s College has barred 54 first-year students from appearing in their semester exams for failing to meet the minimum attendance requirement of 66.7 percent.

The decision, taken on June 4, has sparked anger among students, who allege that they were denied a fair hearing and were treated harshly by the college administration. The college has not yet issued an official response, as reported by news agency ANI.

A group calling themselves the “Concerned Students of St Stephen’s College” stated on Thursday that many of the affected students had valid reasons for their attendance shortfall, including medical emergencies, personal issues, participation in college activities, and even the recent attack in Pahalgam. Despite these circumstances, they were allegedly not granted a chance to present their cases.

“Our parents travelled from different cities and waited outside the Principal’s office from 8 am to 4 pm, only to be shouted at and denied even a brief meeting,” the group’s statement read.

According to the students, after publishing the detention list, the Principal left the campus without prior notice for ten days, leaving them without any authority to appeal to.

In one distressing incident, a student reportedly suffered a panic attack and nearly collapsed after being verbally abused and physically intimidated by security staff. “Even as she struggled to breathe, the administrative staff refused to provide an ambulance or wheelchair,” the students claimed.

They also criticised the college’s “arbitrary and inconsistent” attendance policy, saying that rules are often announced late in the semester and that requests for exemptions due to medical or extracurricular reasons are delayed or disregarded.

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The students further alleged that the Principal has consolidated power to the extent that the post of Vice Principal has remained vacant for nearly a decade, eliminating any alternative channel for grievance redressal. “This is not the first instance of mass detentions. Last year, over 100 students were penalised for missing morning assemblies. This reflects a pattern,” they said.

Calling the administration’s conduct “disrespectful and unaccountable,” the students have demanded that all barred students be immediately permitted to sit for their exams and that the previous system of departmental review for attendance matters be reinstated.

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