Bengaluru, February 25 – Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara defended the police action against members of the Akhila Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) in connection with the controversy at Azim Premji University on Wednesday, stating that the government would not tolerate attempts to disrupt academic events or take the law into one's own hands.
Speaking to reporters, HM Parameshwara said the university had planned to conduct a seminar and emphasized that academic institutions must be allowed to hold discussions on various subjects.
"They were preparing to conduct a seminar. They can discuss any subject. What else can happen in a seminar besides discussion? There will be arguments both for and against," he said.
Referring to the incident in which protesters allegedly entered the campus and attempted to disrupt the programme, the Home Minister said such actions were unacceptable. He questioned whether the police should remain silent when individuals take the law into their own hands and attempt to prevent an event or attack students.
HM Parameshwara made it clear that the government would take a strict view of the matter and initiate disciplinary action against those involved in disrupting the programme.
He reiterated that there was no scope for such incidents and assured that the authorities would act firmly to maintain law and order and ensure the safety of students and educational institutions.
Meanwhile, former Deputy Chief Minister and BJP MLA C.N. Ashwath Narayan stated that Azim Premji University is a prestigious institution that has rendered significant service in the field of education, and its role in the development of the country's education sector is commendable.
However, organizations such as SPARK, which is sponsored by the All India Students' Association (AISA) and is allegedly involved in activities against national interest, must be banned from operating in universities. Such programmes should not be permitted in the future, he demanded.
An immediate investigation must be conducted into the matter of providing a platform for the AISA-sponsored SPARK programme. Prestigious educational institutions should serve as centres of nation-building and must not become hubs for anti-national activities, Ashwath Narayan appealed.
Protests broke out at Azim Premji University in Sarjapur on Tuesday evening after members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) accused a student collective of attempting to host an "anti-national" seminar related to Jammu and Kashmir.
The university clarified that it had not authorized any such event.
It can be noted that, a group of ABVP activists barged onto the campus after forcefully opening the gate, raising slogans and staging demonstrations both outside the university gates and within the premises.
The demonstrators vandalized property, smeared ink on the university's main signage, and spray-painted graffiti reading "Ban SPARK" on campus walls. They also demanded disciplinary action against the organizers and called for a ban on the student collective.
The activists displayed posters condemning the organization of the seminar and waved the national flag and ABVP banners. They staged a dharna inside the premises, and ABVP banners stated that the protest was against anti-national Kashmir separatist forces at Azim Premji University in Bengaluru.
According to ABVP activists, the controversy stemmed from a programme allegedly organized by a student collective named SPARK to mark the anniversary of the alleged Kunan Poshpora mass rape incident of February 23, 1991.
The ABVP claimed that the proposed seminar was derogatory towards the Indian Army and promoted separatist ideologies. Protesters also alleged that the event portrayed Jammu and Kashmir as separate from India.