Rent woes continue to haunt DU students
The troubles for Delhi University students just don’t seem to end, as many of those put up in private PGs and hostels are reportedly being asked to pay rent for the entire period of the lockdown.
Pooja Meena, a BA (Hons) student of IP College for Women, says, “I don’t have the money to pay rent. My father recently lost his job. Even though my things are kept in the PG, I decided to come back to Nagpur because my landlady would otherwise visit me every day for rent... how do I pay it when I barely have money for my fees?”
Few students have even moved in with their friends temporarily. “My landlord kept giving me ultimatums and was about to call the police to evict me, so I went to stay at my friend’s house. When the country is amid a pandemic, must landlords not understand our plight?” asks Alka Yadav, a Political Science (Hons) student of Ramjas College.
Outlining this concern, the Delhi University Student Union (DUSU), along with 128 other representatives from DU colleges, have written to the government requesting financial assistance. “Students are facing financial crunch and have nowhere to go. Those who left for their home towns are scared of coming back, since they have no place to live,” says Munish Chaudhary, president, Law Centre -1, DU. To this, DUSU president Akshit Dahiya adds, “Many students left their belongings in PGs and hostels. Now, the landlords are pestering them to pay rent for it. We have reached out to the government for monetary help or application of some law that warrants waiver of rentals for the months when there was lockdown.”