New Delhi, Oct. 17 -- On hunger strike for days now, the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) has claimed that Vice-Chancellor (V-C) Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit acknowledged the ongoing protest for the first time but refused to speak to rusticated students when she visited the protest site.

In a statement issued on Friday, October 16, the students' union criticised the V-C's public expression of concern over the health of the hunger strikers, alleging that the administration had not made any concrete efforts to hold negotiations.

The union said the administration had communicated its interest in initiating another round of negotiations at 11 am on Friday, but no concrete steps had been taken to finalise the meeting.

It a...