Overview
- The Tata Institute of Social Sciences emailed students early on Friday, July 31, saying the 86th convocation scheduled for August 2 was postponed because of “unforeseen circumstances.”
- Students and some officials report the chief guest would have been Chief Justice Surya Kant and that police held a security meeting on campus the day before the postponement.
- Graduating students say right-wing messages warned against dissent at the ceremony and that these threats, together with concerns about protests linked to the Cockroach Janta Party, shaped the decision; left-wing student groups deny they planned a protest.
- Hundreds of graduates and families face cancelled travel, extra costs and delays in receiving degree certificates, and student bodies have demanded an explanation, prompt degree distribution and administrative accountability.
- TISS has given no detailed reason or new date in public statements, raising questions about campus safety planning, the institute’s handling of student records, and the future of protest and dissent on campus.