New Delhi: The Delhi University unit of the All India Students' Association (AISA) on Thursday staged a protest against what it termed an arbitrary and repeated hike in fees, saying the move would make higher education less accessible to marginalised students.

According to a statement issued by the Left-backed students' organisation, the protest was triggered by a recent university notification increasing Delhi University's share in the combined fee to Rs 4,100 from Rs 3,500 fixed in July last year, marking a rise of over 17 per cent within six months. This followed a 20 per cent fee hike announced in July.

A delegation of students later met the Dean of Students' Welfare and submitted a memorandum demanding an immediate rollback of the latest increase.

The statement said that while university authorities offered assurances during the meeting, similar promises had been made earlier without any concrete relief.

AISA DU vice-president Sanatan said the repeated fee hikes reflected a lack of commitment to inclusive education and accused the administration of adopting a market-driven approach.

Student leaders alleged that the trend showed a growing shift towards treating education as a paid service rather than a right, warning that linking access to education with the ability to pay would exclude students from economically weaker backgrounds and weaken the public character of the university.