Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has responded to the violence that broke out at the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) in Kolkata on Sunday. Sharing a statement issued by the SRFTI Students’ Union on Instagram, Kashyap wrote, ‘This is what they stole the votes for in Bengal. This and so much more.’
The clash occurred between a section of SRFTI students and members of the Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat (ABGP), a right-wing consumer organisation affiliated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) . The ABGP had organised an event at the institute’s main auditorium.
What Led to the Clash
According to the SRFTI Students’ Union, the trouble began when students went to the Main Theatre to put up posters questioning the institute’s decision to allow the ABGP event without informing the student community . The ABGP members confronted the students and attempted to remove them from the theatre.
The students alleged that speakers at the event delivered ‘highly provocative speeches’ . The union also claimed that two students from South India who initially protested were told to speak in Hindi .
The situation escalated into physical violence. The students’ union statement said members of the ABGP verbally abused students, calling them ‘anti-national’ and ‘cockroaches’ .
Students Allege Assault
The SRFTI Students’ Union alleged that ABGP members physically attacked students, including women, using punches, kicks, stones, bricks and sticks . Students were chased through the campus, and some sought shelter inside the library, where the librarian was also allegedly assaulted .
The union further claimed that students’ clothes were torn and phones were forcibly taken during the violence .
A student, Atharv Sharma, told The Telegraph Online that one of the accused who was detained was the same person who chased him and hit him on the head. Sharma also alleged that the man tore the clothes of several students .
Another student claimed they were called ‘Bangladeshi’, ‘anti-national’, ‘Pakistani’ and ‘Naxal’ when they objected to the event being held on their campus .
ABGP Denies Allegations
The ABGP presented a different account. The organisation claimed that its posters and banners were torn down and that its members were beaten up despite having permission to hold the event . A representative told the media that the venue had been rented after paying the stipulated rent and that a group of students surrounded and assaulted its members .
A member of the organisation was quoted as saying, ‘We booked the hall with money. Four people have already been admitted to the hospital. Are they students? They broke the picture of Swami Vivekananda. All the students are intoxicated there’ .
Police Deployment and Protest
A large police contingent led by Deputy Commissioner of Police Arindam Sarkar reached the institute to bring the situation under control . Students blocked the campus gate and staged a sit-in protest, demanding the arrest of those involved in attacking them .
The bus in which ABGP members had arrived remained stuck inside the campus. Students refused to allow it to leave, alleging that RSS members were travelling in it . Bricks and water bottles were reportedly thrown from outside the campus gate .
Visuals from the campus showed students protesting with portraits of B.R. Ambedkar, raising slogans including ‘Jai Bhim’ and ‘Go Back RSS’ .
Several students and professors were reported injured in the clash . The exact number of injured and whether arrests had been made were not immediately confirmed by authorities.
