The 15 received heavy disciplinary punishments, Daneshjoo (Student) News reported on June 18, taking the regime’s confrontation with student activists to a new level.
Previously, more than 40 students at Beheshti University received heavy sentences, including suspension for two terms, expulsion from the dormitory and bans on using recreation facilities. Over the past month, and after a visit by the mullahs’ President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to Beheshti University, which prompted angry student protests, the Herasat (Protection) Office, which is considered a branch of the regime’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) on campus, in conjunction with the disciplinary committee, has carried out confrontational measures against the students. Many students were sentenced in absentia and without being able to defend themselves.
The number, breadth and substance of the sentences have been unprecedented in the history of Beheshti University and in comparison with actions from other universities. One of the articles of a punitive sentence issued by the disciplinary council cites Rule 16 of the Disciplinary Statute.
With the issuance of new sentences, according to obtained information from inside Iran, the number of disciplinary sentences has reached at least 60 instances. These students will be banned from continuing with their education for at least 2 terms. They will also be barred from using recreational and dorm facilities for the rest of their study period.
The unannounced visit of Ahmadinejad and his officials at Beheshti University faced extensive protests by the students, creating a tense atmosphere at the university for a full day. Subsequently, pressures mounted on students.
The students at the university believe that regime officials outside the university and the Minister of Science personally have pressured university authorities to expand the suppression of students. One of the officials and Herasat claimed that the intelligence organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Office of Appointing Lecturers in Tehran are continuously monitoring the situation.
On the night of June 15 and protests at the dorm, which occurred with chants of “God is great,” met violent reactions and insults from Herasat and paramilitary Bassij forces at the university. The day after, 6 student protestors were summoned to the Herasat office.
During the past year, despite all the restrictions and mounting pressures on students at Beheshti University, the campus has witnessed widespread protests on various occasions. Intimidations, threats and confrontations have failed to curb student protests.