Soon after ABVP submitted its “memorandum to the administration” of the state-run Chaudhary Charan Singh University – a major educational institution in western UP – the institution obliged and decided to debar Panwar from all examination work for life. “She has been debarred from setting papers for life,” Dhirendra Kumar Verma, the registrar of the university, told The Wire on April 5.

The unseemly controversy surrounded the private MA political science final-year examination on the paper ‘State Politics in India,’ conducted on April 2 in the colleges affiliated to the CCSU. The ABVP objected to two questions that were about its parent organisation, the RSS.

In this paper, question number 87 asked which of the following were considered anomic groups – those alienated from society. Among the options were “Dal Khalsa, Naxalite Groups, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front and Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh.”

Yet another question, numbered 93, was a match-the-following test. The question seemed to link the RSS to the rise of religious and caste identity politics. The other options linked the BSP to Dalit politics, Mandal Commission to OBC politics and Shiv Sena to politics of regional identity.

1. Rise of backward politics
   B. Rise of Dalit politics
   C. Rise of Religious and Caste identity politics
   D. Rise of regional identity politics
2. Shiv Sena
   2.⁠ ⁠RSS
   3.⁠ ⁠BSP
   4.⁠ ⁠Mandal Commission

The correct answer was A=4, B=3, C=2, D=1

Reputed for its disruptive even violent activities in Delhi University (DU) and elsewhere too, the ABVP said the questions had described the RSS as the reason for the emergence of religious and caste politics on the basis of the available options.

“Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has been an apolitical, social, cultural and dedicated organization in the national interest on the basis of equality and national unity for the last 100 years,” the ABVP said. The wing of the RSS dubbed that the professor’s act was “anti-national” and demanded strict legal action by suspending the examiner who set the question paper in the “interest of students and the nation.”

A copy of the memorandum, shared by the ABVP’s Meerut wing, quoted by The Wire, stated, “The way Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has been added in the above question, it seems that the examiner who set the question paper, being afflicted with some anti-national ideology, has worked to tarnish the image of the Sangh among the students in the society and create a wrong narrative, whereas doing so is not in the national interest.”

The ABVP also threatened to launch a large protest if the university did not act against the examiner. Registrar Verma said that a team of the university’s vice-chancellor concluded that the questions found “objectionable” by the students were “controversial.”  Professor Panwar, who teaches at Meerut College, was asked for a clarification, following which she submitted a written apology.

“She expressed regret and said that it was not her intention. She said she set the questions as there was a chapter on it,” said Verma. The registrar said no further action was taken against her. “She apologised for the mistake. What else could she do,” said Verma.

Related:

Madhya Pradesh faculty accused by ABVP of allegedly “promoting Islam” due to a post on Ramadan greeting

‘Attack on free expression’: ABVP ‘insults’ Udaipur professor for FB post

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After the allegations, Professor Sheikh has been suspended for 15 days from his job.

The ABVP (Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad), which is the student wing of the BJP, claims that Anis Sheikh has discriminated against Hindu students by giving better grades to Muslim students in the subject chemistry while frequently giving low marks to Hindu students and sometimes even failing them.

According to Siasat News, Anis Sheikh has denied all of these allegations, and stated, “I cannot discriminate against any student based on their religion. I treat all my students equally and grade them based on their academic performance.” He has stated that students who don’t attend exams have been pressuring him to give them marks over 80-85 percent and this issue has risen after he refused to be pressured to give in to those demands. He has further stated that he has 60 students in his class, out of which only four are from the minority community, as per PTI. “I will present my side before the investigating committee. The allegations against me are baseless.”

The ABVP has also claimed that Anis Sheikh was encouraging religious conversion to Islam among Hindu students through WhatsApp groups, levelling it as an accusation. Shaikh has been a guest faculty at the university for the past 13 years, Professor Shaik has reportedly also told PTI that he had nothing to do with the WhatsApp group the ABVP is talking about, “It is the WhatsApp group of the department and the HOD (Head of the Department) is the admin. I had nothing to do with it. It was a year old post in the chats about Ramadan greetings”. Sheikh has been suspended from his job for 15 days.

Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh

Members of ABVP organized a protest at Vikram University against a Muslim professor, alleging that he was promoting Islam and encouraging religious conversion.pic.twitter.com/IBZS9FU2iV

— Md Asif Khan‏‎‎‎‎‎‎ (@imMAK02) June 23, 2024

The vice-chancellor met the protesting ABVP and assured them that there would be action. He has also announced that a report will be submitted on the allegations within 15 days.

The incident is eerily similar to a case where some Muslims, including a professor at the Indore Law College was accused of ‘Hinduphobia’ in 2022 after the ABVP had accused them. Only last month, May 2024, the Supreme Court moved to quash the FIR and criminal charges against the Indore Law College teacher and a publisher accused of promoting the “anti-national book” in question. The case reached the court after Dr. Rahman, one of the accused, had filed a Special Leave Petition challenging the Madhya Pradesh High Court’s decision to not to stay the FIR against him.

The ABVP had similarly organised protests against Dr. Rahman in the college, accusing Muslim teachers at the college of promoting fundamentalism. The Indore police had then filed the FIR in December 2022 following the ABVP’s that Dr. Rahman had discussed a “controversial” book found in the college’s library. The Supreme Court called the allegations “absurd” and a case of “persecution” and squashed the charges.

Related:

Indore Law College book controversy case: SC quashes FIR against former principal of the college, rebukes Madhya Pradesh HC for not providing relief to the petitioner

Hindutva mob beats up teacher inside school for teaching diversity

Principal of Pune School assaulted by extremist Hindu mob, police allege accusation raised to be false

International report asserts India’s “rise” on world stage under PM Modi is ‘a mirage’

SC Stays Arrest of Indore Professor in ‘Hinduphobic’ Book Case

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PUCL condemns the insulting treatment of Prof Himanshu Pandya at Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur, by student activists of the ABVP. This represents not just an attack on one person, but an attempt to stifle academic freedom and curtail free speech, vital to the health of any democracy. PUCL demands that the state government take cognizance of the offence without delay, and bring the perpetrators to justice.

Prof Himanshu Pandya had been specially invited to the university to teach a course in research methods. The ABVP members reached his class without any warning. They abused the professor and evicted him from the class, raised ugly slogans and forced him to leave the university, pursuing him with slogans even outside the campus. After Prof Pandya left, the foul-mouthed group protested against course coordinator Prof Sudha Choudhury and department head Hemant Dwivedi.

The agitated ABVP activists claimed they were protesting against Prof Pandya because on a Facebook post six months ago, he had expressed pain over the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992. This is evidence that the ABVP members have little respect for the freedom of expression.

To assert that their protest was legitimate, the students later uploaded content on YouTube claiming that Prof Pandya was a supporter of Palestine. The student activists seemed completely ignorant that the Government of India too has often expressed support for the suffering people of Palestine.

What is noteworthy is that the class Prof Pandya was teaching was about research methodology – there was no mention of either Babri Masjid or Palestine during that session.

PUCL is deeply pained that the Bharatiya Janata Party, in power in the state and currently leading a coalition government at the Centre, has worked relentlessly to constrain academic freedom. The RSS and its affiliated organizations have been working tirelessly to penetrate the education system. These forces of disruption had been curtailed for long in independent India, but have been granted impunity under the rule of the BJP.

Even before this incident on June 8, 2024, there have been instances of attacks on academic freedom.

ABVP activists claimed books written by Bhagat Singh were treasonous, and students must only read material promoting patriotism

Rajasthan Central University disallowed students from watching the BBC documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots. Students of Rajasthan University had attempted a memorial event for martyr to India’s freedom Bhagat Singh, which the ABVP activists stopped. Tearing up literature available at the site, ABVP activists claimed that books written by Bhagat Singh were “treasonous,” and students must only read material that promoted patriotism!

Across universities in the state, there is an undeclared clampdown on events that celebrate democracy, equality, secularism, and freedom of expression. A teacher in Baran district was suspended for speaking with students about the Constitution! Muslim teachers are facing the brunt of the illogical power of the state.

The Constitution of India provides for free expression and debate between people holding different points of view. That is why the freedom of expression is listed as a Fundamental Right. It is a matter of great concern that right-wing activism has found considerable success in curtailing the scope for debate even within universities. Only what Hindutva considers appropriate, according to such activists, ought to feature in curricula and classrooms.

What is significant is that the incident at Udaipur on June 8, 2024 occurred even though the subject of the discussion had nothing to do with Hindutva. The ABVP activists were clearly flexing their muscles, asserting their powers, and working to prevent anyone who disagrees with them from gaining access to a public university. It was a show of power, and an attempt to intimidate.

PUCL calls upon the state government and the university authorities to take cognizance of this crime on India’s democracy and bring the accused to book.

Courtesy: CounterView

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Numerous videos circulating on social media portrayed a man holding a stick, assaulting students, while another person can be seen throwing a bicycle as scenes of chaos unfold. The security personnel of the university can be seen present as well trying to intervene. In one video a man can be seen hitting a student in the head with a small metallic object. As per reports, the Delhi Police has stated that they have received complaints from both sides regarding the incident, and have confirmed that investigations are currently going on.

#WATCH | Delhi | A clash broke out between ABVP and Left-backed student groups at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), last night. The ruckus was reportedly over the selection of election committee members at the School of Languages.

(Video Source: JNU students)
(Note: Abusive… pic.twitter.com/BfpFlhUM2T

— ANI (@ANI) March 1, 2024

According to the Times of India, the vice-chancellor Santishree Dhulipadi has stated that strict action will be taken against the culprits no matter what political affiliation they may belong to. She has also stated that once the student’s medical concerns are addressed the university will investigate and even prepare a report on the incident.

Meanwhile, the JNU Student Union’s Joint Secretary Mohammed Danish, who was chairing the meeting, has stated that he received threats due to his religious identity and also claimed that he was held hostage during the incident. The JNU Student Union has claimed that the ABVP organised the entire attack deliberately so that it could, they say, affect the electoral process.

The vice-president of the All India Students’ Association in JNU has stated that this was a “one sided attacked and not a clash.” She describes the events stating, “The election body of School Language was supposed to be elected yesterday. Four names were elected but the ABVP hijacked the entire process. When it resumed and the process concluded. We came to know that they had surrounded Danish and were not letting him leave. We tried to speak with them but they didn’t listen to us and started to launch an attack with sticks. They also hit me on my head. They do this under the protection of VC and the police.”

Meanwhile, ABVP members claims that more than 200 Left workers attacked them.

Similarly, attacks that claim the ABVP as aggressors have taken place earlier as well. In 2023, a student named Nazar Mohammad Mohaideen from Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu a research scholar at the Centre for Molecular Medicine was reportedly attacked by ABVP members during a movie screening on February 19 in 2023, following which he was reportedly harassed by his supervisor at the university who refused to guide him and labelled him a “security threat.” His department also attempted to cancel his PhD, however, it was reversed after the Delhi High Court recently. In 2015, Najeeb Ahmed, a first year MSc Biotechnology student at the university, reportedly “disappeared” after he was beaten and assaulted by the ABVP students in the university.

Related:

Media outlets forced to remove false and defamatory news about Najeeb Ahmed

Hyderabad: University students’ belongings attacked in transphobic hate crime

Rajasthan: Muslim teachers suspended for ‘love-jihad’, as students allege they were made to falsely testify

The post JNU Students conducting election meeting attacked appeared first on SabrangIndia.

That is when the trouble suddenly started. Sabrangindia is in possession of a video that depicts the fracas. The “leader” of ABVP also made a speech in which he said that “these people” use education to poison people’s minds. Pune police have detained some Students have been detained with no phones on their person.

Meanwhile, functionaries of the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and students of Pune University’s Lalit Kala Kendra claimed had objectionable dialogues and scenes. The play, staged by the Lalit Kala Kendra, officially called the Centre for Performing Arts, was based on backstage banter of actors who perform various roles in Ramleela. It was an exam performance.

“We took objection to such acts and stopped the play which was called Ramleela. It hurts Hindu sentiments. The students of the Lalit Kala Kendra then tried to heckle us. We have approached the police and have sought the registration of a case,” Barole said. The ABVP also made unsubstantiated claims that Sita was depicted smoking etc.

 Inspector Ankush Chintaman of Chaturshringi police station told PTI there was a confrontation and verbal spat between students and ABVP members. “We have summoned both groups to record their statements,” Chintaman said.

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In a circular dated November 21, the UGC discussed the “inspirational legacy” of Dattaji Didolkar and talked about his role as the founder of numerous social and other organisations and called him “an inspiration to thousands of students.” The UGC announced that 2023 marks the birth centenary year of Dattaji Didolkar and talked of plans for various programs scheduled from August 7, 2023, to August 7, 2024, in commemoration of the ABVP founder. The circular directed higher education institutions in Maharashtra to actively promote and engage the state’s youth and students in the planned centenary celebrations. 

The UGC also referred to a letter by Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport and Highways of India, to Dharmendra Pradhan, who is the Union minister for Education, where Gadkari has highlighted about the need for programmes being organised to commemorate Didolkar and plans of publishing a book on him. 

According to the report, the Yuva Sena, which is the Shiva Sena’s youth wing, has registered its dissent over this move by the UGC and demanded its withdrawal.

Pradeep Sawant, former Mumbai University Senate member from the Yuva Sena, has stated they are not against celebrating birth centenaries, “But it should be done by the political party and RSS with their own funds. It should not be imposed on colleges and universities. The programme is going to be held in Nagpur. Then why are letters issued to all higher education institutions in Maharashtra?”

Furthermore, head of the ABVP Konkan region talking about the alleged contribution of Didolkar, Amit Dhomse, has stated that, “Dattaji Didolkar has made great contributions in social and education fields. He was at the forefront of the struggle for the construction of the Vivekananda Memorial. Celebrating the birth centenary year of such social activists has been our culture. Yuva Sena should study the educational and social contribution of Didolkar without bringing politics into anything.”

In recent times, there has been growing concern over the government led inclusion of right-wing RSS figures as part of school and college syllabus. In June, 2023, the Madhya Pradesh government had revealed plans about introducing Savarkar Damodar as part of a school syllabus by including a whole chapter on him. Savarkar is known to be a hardline figure and is a revered ideologue of the Hindutva movement.

 Related:

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More than 5,000 teaching & 15,000 non-teaching posts kept vacant: Education Ministry

The post UGC asks Maharashtra colleges to encourage students to attend the celebration of RSS leader’s birthday appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Communal colours are spreading fast in our country as even Muslims students are being called “terrorists” during the University General Body Meeting at Hyderabad University. On February 15, the students at the said Hyderabad University alleged that cadres belonging to the Hindutva student outfit ABVP verbally and physically attacked the Muslim students, while calling them “terrorists”. While further details have not been divulged, offensive statements like ‘Muslims are terrorists’ have often been used in the recent times.

This incidents comes as the Kerala High Court spoke in regards to terrorism and opined that, “Terrorism is an evil affecting the life and liberty of people. It affects the growth of the nation in all respects. In fact, no religion propagates terrorism or hatred. But, unfortunately, some fanatics or religious fundamentalists have distorted the views of religion, for spreading messages of terrorism and hatred, without realising the amount of damage it is doing to the society as well as to the country as a whole.”

Other instances of stereotypical representation of Muslims

Bombay High Court’s recent order through which the court has directed that no police mock drills are to be conducted depicting persons of a particular community as terrorists. In this case, a Public Interest Litigation was filed before the Bombay High Court’s Aurangabad bench, seeking guidelines on police mock drills and citing three mock drills in which a police constable dressed as a terrorist shouted “Nara-E-Takbeer, Allah-u-Akbar” after being arrested during the drill.

According to LiveLaw, the petitioner, Sayed Usama, alleged in the PIL that the conduct of the aforementioned mock drills, in which a Muslim community is deliberately shown as a ‘terrorist’ by the police authorities and the State, clearly shows their bias against the Muslim community and sends a message that terrorists have a particular religion, and this act of the police amounts to defaming the Muslim community.

The contents of the PIL: The PIL cites three instances of police mock drills – one each in Ahmednagar, Chandrapur, and Aurangabad – in which a police officer acted as a ‘terrorist’, who had ostentatiously dressed in attire most distinctively worn by the men of the Muslim community.  The PIL then provided that a s the drill progressed and when the police authorities apprehended the said terrorist, he was seen shouting “Nara-E-Takbeer, Allah-u-Akbar,” implying that he is a Muslim.

According to the PIL, this demonstrates a significant prejudice prevailing within the police force against the community and is a violation of every person’s constitutionally guaranteed rights in this country– the right to live with dignity, the right not to be discriminated against by the state solely on the basis of religion and race, as is guaranteed under Articles 14, 15, and 21 of the Indian Constitution.

According to the petition, the scripts for all of the aforementioned mock drills have been approved by the respective heads of the police authorities at the District/City level – Superintendent of Police and/or the Commissioner of Police.

the PIL goes on to say that all of the police officers involved in the enactment and animation of the aforementioned mock drill plays suffer from communalism and do not have their beliefs and ethos embedded in the constitutional principles of secularism and pluralism, rendering them unsuitable and inept for discharging their duties as police officers, and it erodes the faith and trust of the Muslim community in them, as was provided by the LiveLaw.

The PIL also contends that such mock drills maligns a specific community and portrays all members of that community as ‘terrorists,’ which is bound to cause friction and strife amongst targeted community.

The PIL requests that the court rule and declare that the practice of portraying terrorists as belonging to a specific community in mock drills conducted by police officials violates the dignity, liberty, and freedom of that community and endangers the nation’s fraternity, integrity, and unity.

The said PIL also seeks appropriate departmental/criminal action against the police officers who committed the illegal acts detailed in the Petition. As was provided by LiveLaw, respondents in the case included the State Home Minister, Home Secretary, State Director General of Police, Additional General of Police, Superintendent of Police, Ahmednagar, and Superintendent of Police, Chandrapur.

Order issued by the court: A division bench of Justices Mangesh Patil and S G Chapalgaonkar, hearing the PIL on February 3, 2022, issued the order directing that no mock drills depicting members of a specific community as terrorists be conducted until the next date of hearing, which was February 10. The bench had also directed the Public Prosecutor to take instructions and notify the court if any guidelines for conducting the mock drills exist.

The complete order can be viewed here.

Previous similar instance of anti-Muslim hatred

In November 2022, a video had surfaced on social media showing a visibly irked Muslim student raising his voice against an Islamophobic joke cracked by his Professor during a lecture. While the “joke” was not caught on camera, the student’s reaction makes it clear that it had something to do with Muslims being terrorists.

The student could be seen defending himself and telling the professor that he cannot speak about Muslim in such a derogatory manner and the professor seemed flustered and was apologizing seeing that the student got offended by his “joke”. The student said, “it’s not funny, 26/11 was not funny, Islamic terrorism is not funny. Being a Muslim in this country and facing this every day is not funny.”

After an uproar, the Manipal Institute of Technology, Karnataka had ordered a probe against its Professor who made a jibe at a Muslim student and called him by the name of a terrorist. 

Related:

Being a Muslim in this country and facing this every day is not funny

Bom HC restrains police from depicting Muslims as terrorists in mock drills

Protest against ‘Halal Certificate’ in Dhanbad latest in an effort to create another stigma & bogey

Yet again, hate-filled speech delivered by RSS man, Ishwar Lal: Rajasthan

Are both state and non-state actors to be blamed for this attack on religious places of the Muslim community?

1000s or hundreds of thousands, the Karnataka govt’s ill-motivated ‘Hijab ban’ has pushed Muslim girls out of school

The post University takes on a communal colour as Muslim students are targeted, abused, called terrorist by ABVP appeared first on SabrangIndia.

India’s premier human rights network, National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM), has said, it “stands in solidarity with students from Delhi University (DU) who have been “bravely resisting Akhil Bharatiya Vidya Parishad’s (ABVP’s) repeated attempts at turning educational campuses in the country into hostile and polarised spaces fuelled by the language of religious intolerance and Brahminical patriarchy.”

In a statement, referring to the 1st December incident, in which DU students campaigning for the release of Dr GN Saibaba, former DU professor and 90% physically challenged, languishing in jail for alleged Maoist links, were beaten up by ABVP members using lathis and bricks, NAPM said, “In response to this dastardly act, students organised a protest meet against such hooliganism the following day, which is when ABVP goons attacked students again.”

“More recently”, it added, “A group of students had organised a sit-in on the 8th of December to appeal for peace and for the right to democratic dissent where they were struck by ABVP members without provocation.”

Regretting that “Delhi Police’s response to the ABVP violence is appalling”, NAPM said, “Following its established patterns, instead of taking action against the actual culprits, the Police assaulted and detained the students peacefully opposing these attacks, thereby continuing its streak of enabling ABVP miscreants who instigate such acts in university campuses.”

Asserting that this is the latest of instances “where the ABVP, the RSS-BJP’s student wing, has created violent disturbances in an educational institution”, NAPM noted, “Over the last 7 years, wherever students and teachers have tried to organise meetings and conventions on themes reflecting the spirit of the Indian Constitution, such attacks have become expected and have only increased in frequency over time.”

Believes NAPM, “ABVP has had a long history of opposing the culture of debate, democracy and peaceful dissent which colleges and universities are supposed to foster, and has instead created an environment of needless violence and fear. By refusing to lodge FIRs against the accused, the police force keeps putting common students in danger and fails to fulfil its responsibility in keeping everyone safe.”

“Knowing that they will get away with intimidation and assault each time has emboldened ABVP into scaling up the extent of their attacks with complete impunity”, NAPM said, demanding, that the authorities must “uphold the Constitutional rights to education, dissent and remediation, and take strict action against the recurrent crimes of the saffron brigade.”

“We hope that relevant authorities return campuses to the students, who want to learn, and put a stop to this culture of volatility and violence, perpetuated by systemic efforts to curb all diversity of thoughts and practice”, it insisted.

Courtesy: https://www.counterview.net

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The screenshots of chats in a WhatsApp group named “ABVP DTU FRESHERS” are being circulated on social media and being condemned for the vile and pernicious conversations that they represent. What is believed to be a WhatsApp group  of members of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) of the Delhi Technological University’s First year students, had conversations calling for mass targeted killings and kidnaping of people from the Muslim community.

One of the participants in the abovementioned chat suggested that bomb blasts should be done to “exterminate” Muslims while the other said that since Muslim women are not allowed to come out of their homes, one should kidnap them and make them “victims of bhagwa (saffron) love jihad”.

The conversation also veered towards “conversion” of Muslims. A participant in the Whatsapp conversation said, “Rather thinking of mass genocide think of mass conversion(sic)”. He/she further said  that Muslim should be converted because they were also Hindu at some point and converted to Islam out of fear due to being lower castes. They also said that in Punjab and Assam Hindus are being converted to Islam. One other student suggested that Hindu Mahasabha and other right wing organizations “should start a course on how to marry Muslim girls and convert them to hindu (sic)”.

These were merely screenshots of one of the hundreds of thousands of such whatsapp groups that must be in existence where far right aligned people congregate and incite  violence. Since these are private chats, these do not get disclosed/become public, but this is how an atmosphere –complicit and prepared for premeditated violence –is created. While examining the role of persons accused in the Delhi (2020) riots conspiracy case, where Umar Khalid, Meeran Haider, Gulfisha Fatima, Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita and others are charged, the police have relied upon WhatsApp group chats of student committees to prove conspiracy angle. However, until today whatever chats have been produced by the police before courts, in bail hearings, no incitement to violence has been attributed to the accused and only calls for protest and organizing protest sites were discussed.

These chats allegedly from/ attributed to the ABVP group of first year students show how these young minds have deep hatred ingrained in them and how misinformation is rapidly spread only to fulfill the intent of the social unrest, as promoted by the radical right wing.

Related:

CCTV Cameras to be installed after anti-Brahmin graffiti surfaces: JNU

ABVP goons allegedly attack protesting students: Delhi University (DU)

Six Govt Law college teachers taken off duty after ABVP complaint: MP

The post Hate watch: ABVP alleged WhatsApp chats leaked; calls for targeted crimes exposed? appeared first on SabrangIndia.

INDORE: In a new, all time low for the human rights and law and order matrix in the country, the Madhya Pradesh government on Tuesday moved against author Dr Farhat Khan, whose book on ‘Collective Violence and Criminal Justice System’ is the subject of a police investigation and she faces an FIR along with former principal of Government Law College Indore Inamur Rahman, professor Dr Mirza Mojij and the publisher of the book. All three are threatened with arrests, reports Times of India.

Home minister Narottam Mishra warned on Tuesday, December 7, that he would write to the department concerned to “revoke her PhD”, and further threatened that swift action will be taken against those spreading religious extremism. Mishra openly said that he has issued instructions to police to arrest the accused in the case. “We have formed teams to arrest the accused. They will be nabbed soon,” the home minister told reporters in Bhopal. 

On amazon, the 2015 publication, shows as being co-authored by Dr Sheetal Kanwal and Dr Farhat Ali Khan, Amar Law Publication’s Collective Violence and Criminal Justice System for LLM Students. It is not so far known what action has been ‘ordered’ against the co-author, Dr Sheetal Kanwal.

Meanwhile, all four –the publisher, Dr Farhat Ali Khan, former principal of the Government Law College, Indore, Inamur Rahman and Dr Mirza Mopjij — have been booked by Bhanwarkuan police in Indore on the basis of a complaint by ABVP leader Lucky Adiwal, who is pursuing an LLM degree at the same college. They are accused of promoting and distributing the book that ‘encourages animosity between religions and promotes enmity between groups’. On December 7, the anticipatory bail pleas of principal Rahman and professor Mojij were rejected by sessions Judge Rakesh Kumar Goyal. ACP Dishesh Agrawal told TOI: “Soon, we will also announce a bounty on two of the accused. 

According to an FIR copy, accessed by ANI news and reported by The Print, a case was registered against writer Farhat Khan, owner of Amar Law Publication, Hitesh Khetrapal, Law College principal Inam Ur Rehman and College Professor Mirza Mojiz under sections 153 A, 153B, 295A, 500, 504, 505, 505 (2) and 34 of the IPC.

Bhanwarkuan Police Station in charge Shashikant Chaurasia told the media, “ABVP (Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad) student union have lodged a complaint that the book contains much such content which hurt the religious sentiments of a community. It is likely to disturb the communal harmony between the two communities, it may lead to violence.”

“Acting on the complaint, a case was registered against the accused and further investigation into the matter is underway,” Chaurasia added. Notably, state home minister Narottam Mishra had also instructed Indore Commissioner to investigate the matter and registered FIR against the accused within 24 hours.

Earlier on December 3, the college principal Inam Ur Rehman had resigned following an uproar in the Law College for the last three days. He submitted his resignation to Additional Director Higher Education Kiran Saluja.

Principal Rehman had then told ANI, “I am very hurt by the ruckus created by outside students. I don’t want to stay here anymore. I wanted to take this college to a higher level but I think it is not in my control. There was no bad environment of any kind here before but now they are spoiling the college environment so I am leaving.”

Owner of the publication house, Hitesh Khetrapal reportedly told the media, “There was a controversy about this book two years ago. When the matter came to light, we had a discussion with the writer and changed the pages containing controversial content. Farhat also submitted a written apology that such incident will not occur again.” (ANI)

The Madhya Pradesh Police are trying to “ascertain the role of principal and the accused professor” in this entire episode.” Police have booked the accused under IPC for defamation, promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, and making assertions prejudicial to national integration. In their bail applications, the two professors submitted that the book has been in the college library since 2014 while Dr Rahman was appointed principal in 2019, and Dr Mirza was appointed vice-principal after 2014. The book was not for issuance to students and has been placed separately in the library, they said.

The complainant, an ABVP member, however, searched for it in the library and got it issued though he is not a student of the course related to the subject, submitted the defence counsel.

The ABVP (Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad) is an affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamesvak Sangh (RSS) and responsible for a series of conflict-driven incidents in various campuses of the country. 

After the controversy broke last week, Dr Rahman formed a probe committee and removed the professors against whom allegations had been made off teaching duty, the counsel argued, adding that Dr Rahman and Dr Mojij only have supervisory roles in the college. Intervenor counsel Govind Singh Bais submitted that both the professors had recommended the book to students. “As many as four students have submitted an affidavit in court stating that the professors recommended the book for the syllabus,” he said. Strangely, after hearing both sides, the court rejected the bail application.    

Who is Narottam Mishra, MP’s home minister?

 In April 2022, like in over a dozen locations all over the country, Madhya Pradesh had seen violence break out after controversial slogans and even arms had accompanies the spate of Ram Navmi related Shobha Yatras. At the time, Mishra, occupying the home minister’s chair had made the controversial remarks as reported by India Today. In a news item after live TV coverage, India Today had reported, under the heading  “Why violence in our festivals only? MP Home Minister defends bulldozer action on rioters– “The rioters will not allow communal harmony until they are cut to size,” MP Home Minister Narottam Mishra said on live TV. “This is the only way.”

“Ram Navami comes once every year but 12 places across the country reported violence. (Clashes) in JNU over eating non-vegetarian food on Ram Navami. All these happen during our festivals and never during theirs. Is that not correct?” Mishra told India Today TV as he responded to allegations that the BJP uses festivals like Ram Navami to spread communal hatred in society even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks about “sabka saath, sabka vikas”.

This had been preceded by unprecedented and unilateral bulldozing of homes of Muslims living in Khargone, MP.  The district administration had razed the properties allegedly of stone pelters with bulldozers, much like the administration in Uttar Pradesh under Yogi Adityanath. “The rioters will not allow communal harmony until they are cut to size,” the minister said on live TV. “This is the only way.”

Related:

Six Govt Law college teachers taken off duty after ABVP complaint: MP

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