Bengaluru: Students rallied against the Azim Premji University (APU) administration Thursday over a police complaint following ABVP’s alleged disruption of a campus talk on Kashmir.The university registrar met the students in an attempt to allay their “fear and confusion”.
Earlier in the day, a large number of students gathered on campus demanding that the administration withdraw the complaint even as APU’s student council issued a statement urging the university to uphold its tradition of intellectual freedom.“What concerns us most is the asymmetry in outcomes that followed the events of the past few days. Those who entered the campus uninvited, caused physical harm to members of our community, and damaged university property were granted bail and face bailable charges. Meanwhile, our students who organised a peaceful gathering, whatever the procedural lapses, are now subject to a non-bailable offence under section 299 of BNS,” said a statement from the student council. Offences section 299 of BNS is bailable on a court order.While acknowledging that holding an event without prior approval may violate university protocol, the council said such matters should be addressed through internal mechanisms like the disciplinary committee rather than filing an FIR. In the evening, the administration met nearly 800 students who had gathered on the campus. “There was a lot of fear and confusion among students in the past two days. We were not even aware of the FIR on the organisers until the media reported it. We wanted answers. To a large extent, the meeting helped us,” replied an APU student.“The administration told us that no student was named in the FIR, but it was against a social media handle that used the name of the university. It told us that it was part of the process of filing a complaint against the ABVP members. Also, the registrar assured us that they would discuss with police on removing section 299. This was a lot of relief. No students are questioned so far,” the student added.In the meantime, police continued to patrol the campus. Students have been asked to carry ID cards while stepping out, and food carts outside the campus were permitted to function only till 9pm as part of the security measures.The controversy began after the Spark APU Reading Circle, affiliated to the All India Students Association (AISA), announced a talk on the Kunan Poshpora incident, a 35-year-old episode in Kashmir where 35 women were allegedly gang-raped by security forces. ABVP members termed the event “anti-national” and allegedly barged into the campus, vandalised property and assaulted security guards. They were later arrested and released on bail.Subsequently, university registrar Rishikesh BS filed a complaint stating the administration had no prior knowledge of the event. “We were never contacted by individuals from Spark Reading Circle, nor was any written permission given for them,” the complaint said.BOX:The university’s education actively encourages critical engagement with history, politics, and social justice. We are taught to ask hard questions, and have considered the university to be a safe space for open discussions. For the administration to respond to students doing exactly that with a criminal FIR undermines the very intellectual freedom this institution is founded on-Students’ Council, APU——-The University has processes to engage directly with students in these matters. We will continue to do that. We have nothing more to add-Spokesperson, Azim Premji University.
