Kolkata, Nov. 10 -- The controversy over the expulsion of two female students from Presidency University intensified on Monday, with Vice-Chancellor Nirmalya Narayan Chakraborty's son joining a protest against the administration's decision and alleging political pressure behind the move.
Arka Sen Chakraborty, a postgraduate student of History at the university, attended a street-corner meeting organised by human rights organisation APDR opposite the campus on College Street. Speaking at the gathering, he strongly opposed the expulsion, saying students had never expected such severe punishment for writing something on a poster. "This is not just the administration's decision. We all understand where the political pressure is coming from," he said, condemning what he described as a decision that could jeopardise the future of his expelled classmates. He added that questions would be raised against the decision both inside and outside the campus.
Nearly 1,000 students and alumni have also emailed a letter to the Vice-Chancellor demanding withdrawal of the expulsion. Historian Tanika Sarkar, former MP and retired bureaucrat Jawhar Sircar, and historian Tapati Guha-Thakurta are among the signatories.
However, ABVP state secretary Nilkantha Bhattacharya maintained that expulsion was insufficient and demanded legal action against the two students.
Meanwhile, expelled student Olivia Banerjee questioned the impartiality of the university's inquiry committee. Admitting that she had written the word 'rapist' on a poster featuring Swami Vivekananda, she maintained that the remark was directed against ABVP and not Vivekananda. She said she had no regrets and stood by her statement.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.