Kolkata, Sep 27 (PTI) A clash broke out on Sunday between a section of students and members of a right-wing consumer group which organised a programme on the campus of the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) in Kolkata, leaving several people injured.
The students alleged that speakers who took part in the event organised by the Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat (ABGP) delivered “highly provocative speeches” and were beaten up by its members when they protested.
The ABGP, on the other hand, claimed the students tore posters, disrupted the programme and attacked them.
An SRFTI official said the authorities were keeping a tab on the situation and police were deployed outside the campus, and the situation is now under control.
The organisation had rented the institute’s main auditorium of SRFTI, a central government-run institute, for a programme scheduled from 12 pm to 4 pm on Sunday.
Both sides claimed that they were attacked by the other group, while multiple students were reportedly injured, and several professors were assaulted.
As students blocked the institute’s gates amid tension on the campus, police personnel stood guard outside, amid shouting of slogans by both sides.
The spokesperson of the students alleged that ABGP members entered the campus, assaulted them and made derogatory remarks, including calling them “anti-national”, “urban Naxals” and “terrorists”.
They also alleged that female students were manhandled.
A member of the ABGP claimed that four people had been admitted to hospital following the incident.
He also alleged that a statue or picture of Swami Vivekananda had been damaged during the melee.
“We will request parents not to send their guardians to SRFTI as that will create more anti-nationals,” one panchayat member said.
An SRFTI official said there was no report of any serious injury to anyone, including students.
Named after Satyajit Ray, the SRFTI is the second national centre for cinema education in India. It was established in 1995 by the Government of India.
The incident occurred weeks after a clash between members of the ABVP and the Left-wing student organisations at Jadavpur University. PTI SUS NN
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