‘Azad Kashmir’ graffiti, entry of ‘plainclothes policemen’ in JU trigger row

'Azad Kashmir' and 'Free Palestine' graffiti have been spotted on the Jadavpur University campus, triggering a row.

The alleged entry of 'plainclothes police personnel' into the university campus on 10 March, Monday, also did not go down well with a section of the students and teachers.

Protests have been held for the past few days at Jadavpur University where two students were injured as the car of state education minister Bratya Basu and another accompanying vehicle allegedly grazed past them during a Left protest on the campus on 1 March.

An FIR has been lodged against Basu and against professor and TMC leader Om Prakash Mishra in connection with the violence.

Graffiti in black proclaiming 'Azad Kashmir' and 'Free Palestine' were seen on a wall near Gate No. 3 of the university on Monday, but it was not known who or which organisation was behind it.

JU's Trinamool Chhatra Parishad unit president Kishalay Roy alleged, "Some ultra-left student outfits are behind this and more such graffiti can be spotted if one goes around the sprawling campus."

SFI's JU unit leader Abhinaba Basu said, "we don't support secessionist views though we are against the repression of minorities in BJP-ruled states."

Senior faculty member and functionary of a TMC-leaning forum of academics Om Prakash Mishra said, "We are against any poster and graffiti which support secessionist views."

When Mishra entered the campus for the first time after the 1 March incident, he was greeted with slogans like “BJP–TMC dictatorship se azadi [freedom from the BJP–TMC dictatorship]” and “go back” by a section of Left-leaning students.

In another development, activists from SFI and AIDSO along with leading professor unions JUTA and ABUTA claimed that around 30 police personnel in plainclothes entered the campus around 1:00 p.m. on Monday shortly after Mishra arrived and stayed till the afternoon hours when the classes were over.

SFI leader Souryadipto Roy said students got agitated after spotting plainclothes policemen on the campus shortly after Mishra entered and raised slogans demanding the university be freed from intimidation by ruling TMC and the state administration.

"We refuse to participate in any discussion with the university administration till police personnel leave," he said.

Mishra had come to the campus for the first time, nine days after the 1 March campus protests by left and ultra-left students during the AGM of the West Bengal College and University Professors Association (WBCUPA).

Mishra was allegedly manhandled, following the injury to the students on 1 March.

He, however, claimed to have no knowledge about police presence and said he had not intimated police about his arrival and did not need any security at his "own university" among his students and fraternity.

JUTA general secretary Partha Pratim Roy told PTI, "We don't welcome the presence of police on the campus, uniformed or in plain dress. We and the students had the information about presence of several police personnel in civil dress. As we and several senior teachers took up the issue with university authorities and also persuaded the agitating students not to escalate the issue, the matter did not go out of control."

The students handed over their charter of demands including student union polls and campus safety to university officials.

"We hope classes will fully resume from Tuesday," Roy added.

The All Bengal University Teachers Association (ABUTA) office-bearer and senior JU faculty member Goutam Maity also said there were reports about the presence of police in plain clothes inside the campus during Mishra's visit, "which was unfortunate".

A senior university official said the police were not called to the campus and the authorities had no information about their presence inside.

"Police have been present outside the campus and keeping vigil since 1 March," he said.