HighLights
  1. SFI and ABGP members clashed at SRFTI Kolkata.
  2. At least seven people were injured in the campus violence.
  3. Heavy police deployed to control the escalating situation.

At least seven people were injured after a clash broke out between members of the SFI and the Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat (ABGP) during an event organised by the ABGP at the auditorium of the SRFTI (Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute) on Sunday. Heavy police deployment was reported in the area.

Students were reportedly involved in stone-pelting inside the SRFTI campus. Police personnel began entering the campus by scaling the walls, reported News18. The ABGP claimed that several of its members were still stranded inside the campus.

Police also scuffled with a crowd that had gathered outside the main gate. The crowd allegedly attempted to break through the gate and enter the campus. Students were reportedly heard raising Azadi slogans from inside the campus, triggering fresh tension.

The students alleged that speakers at the event organised by the Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat (ABGP) delivered "highly provocative speeches" and that ABGP members beat them when they protested, reported PTI.

Several videos showed police personnel in riot gear, including helmets and protective equipment, managing and pushing back a large, agitated crowd near the metal barriers and gates.

The ABGP, however, claimed that the students tore down posters, disrupted the programme and attacked its members.

Authorities continued to closely monitor the situation, while police were deployed outside the campus. The situation was later brought under control.

What Happened

The Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat, or ABGP, is an all-India non-profit organisation that works primarily on consumer protection and consumer rights. The organisation is affiliated with the RSS. The student organisation had rented the main auditorium of the SRFTI, a central government-run institute, for a programme scheduled from 12 pm to 4 pm on Sunday.

On Sunday, the ABGP had booked an auditorium at SRFTI and organised a workshop were some students allegedly came and disrupted the event. Banners were also reportedly torn down.

The students demanded that no one associated with the RSS be allowed to enter the campus. The subsequently became more tense, reported News18.

Both sides alleged that members of the opposing group had attacked them. Multiple students were reportedly injured, while several professors were also allegedly assaulted.

ALSO READ: Jadavpur University Violence: How Student Meeting Triggered ABVP Protests And Vandalism At JU | Explained

As students blocked the institute's gates amid the escalating tension, police personnel stood guard outside the campus while slogans were raised by supporters of both sides.

A spokesperson for the students alleged that ABGP members entered the campus, assaulted them and made derogatory remarks, including calling them "anti-national", "urban Naxals" and "terrorists".

The students also alleged that female students were assaulted.

Meanwhile, an ABGP member claimed that a statue or picture of Swami Vivekananda was also damaged.

( With inputs from PTI )

 


Also In News