The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union (JNUSU) unequivocally condemns the extortion racket run and supported by JNU administration in the garb of contractualisation of Security Guards.
Every year the contract changes and the guards are compelled to pay hefty amounts in order to retain their jobs. It is common knowledge that the amount gathered is shared by the company with the Security Director, Registrar and the Vice-Chancellor. Once again the case of exploitation has emerged from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), where the representatives of the new contractors, AE Securitas, are demanding 40,000 from each worker in exchange for continuation of their employment under the new contractor arrangement.
According to workers, they were instructed to submit the money along with their documents in order to retain their jobs in JNU. Another concern is that the company has asked them to submit documents at Katwaria Sarai instead of the company’s designated office, raising grave concerns regarding illegal money collection, coercion, and intimidation. The All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) has submitted a formal complaint demanding urgent intervention to stop what amounts to organised extortion of vulnerable contractual workers employed in the university.
This is not an isolated incident. In September 2025, formal complaints were filed regarding an extortion racket involving JNU sanitation inspector Saurav and Rakshak company officials Salik and Girish. Dalit sanitation workers were allegedly forced to pay ₹50,000 for securing sanitation jobs in JNU. Despite repeated complaints, the JNU administration failed to take meaningful action against the accused individuals. Earlier, another contractor, GA Digital, had similarly attempted to extort money from mess workers and office staff. Those attempts were resisted only after sustained intervention by AICCTU and workers.
The latest developments expose a continuing pattern of corruption, exploitation, and insecurity imposed upon contractual workers inside JNU. Under the present administration led by Vice-Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit, exploitative contractual arrangements have expanded while workers continue to face harassment, uncertainty, and denial of basic labour protections. JNUSU strongly condemns the manner in which private contractors are allegedly operating with impunity inside a public university, extracting money from poor workers desperate to retain employment. Such practices are turning JNU into a site of corruption, intimidation, and systematic anti-worker exploitation.
Many of the affected security guards have been working continuously in JNU for nearly 10–12 years under precarious contractual conditions. Instead of regularising these workers or ensuring labour rights, the administration has allowed a regime where workers are allegedly compelled to pay bribes merely to continue their employment.
JNUSU demands:
- Immediate investigation into the allegations against AR Securitas and other contractors operating in JNU.
- Protection of workers from coercion, intimidation, and illegal money collection.
- Immediate action against officials and contractors involved in extortion.
- Regularisation of long-serving contractual workers.
- Full implementation of “Equal Pay for Equal Work” as directed by labour authorities.
