‘Cockroaches! Anti-nationals’: What happened at Kolkata’s Satyajit Ray film institute?

“I went to save my friends after the scuffle broke out; that’s when a man shoved me in the chest,” said Purvi, a member of the Student Council at Kolkata’s Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute. She alleged that female students were threatened with the words, “If you are still alive, we will deal with you inside within seven days.”

Purvi is one of several students who allege they were chased, beaten and stoned on Sunday after they protested an event organised on campus by the Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat, an RSS-linked body that focuses on consumer rights. The ABGP denies the charge and says its members retaliated only after being attacked.

The clash at the government-run institute left several students injured. Three FIRs have been filed so far. The institute’s administration had allowed the ABGP to use the main hall on Sunday for a four-hour state-level meeting. A section of the students say they were not consulted and learned of the booking only that morning. Nachiket, a member of students’ representative body Student Council, claimed no posters about the event were displayed at the gate, and that the council’s calls to the registrar went unanswered. The students said they then went to the hall to put up posters against the event, and the confrontation followed.

Dean Sukanta Majumdar told Newslaundry that the question of who organised the event would be addressed later, and that permission was granted under the institute’s policy. “We are trying to restore peace. We have lodged a complaint with the police.” Registrar Deepak Kumar did not respond to calls seeking comment.

SRFTI vice-chancellor Santosh Ajmera, who was appointed a day or two before the incident, told a press conference that students had told him they did not start the violence and that their safety was his priority. “I believe such incidents should never happen in any educational institution,” he said.

The students’ accounts

The students claim they were targeted for objecting to a political organisation using a film institute. The Students’ Union, in a public statement, alleged that ABGP members “attacked the students using punches, kicks, stones, bricks, sticks, and other objects”. It also alleged that the mob followed students into the library and assaulted the librarian.

“We are very active in the college, and for us, any such political event is unacceptable here because this is a film institute,” Purvi said. “It is meant for resources, students, and film screenings; this event does not fall into any of those categories.”

Nachiket alleged he was grabbed and beaten near the theatre gate, and that students were chased through the building and had large stones thrown at them later.  “We have submitted a written complaint to the police commissioner,” he said.

Atharv Sharma, who was injured, claimed the students were taunted as “anti-nationals” and “cockroaches” when they went to put up posters. “I started running, with about 20 people chasing us,” he said. “Someone punched me in the head, and that area is swollen now. I ran to the library to save myself, but they surrounded the library as well.”

Atharv identified the injured student in a green T-shirt in a viral video as Jaideep, who he said was hit by a stone. He alleged that another Student Council member, Meghraj, was attacked with a sharp object. None of these injury claims could be independently verified.

Shivam said he was in his room when stones began to be thrown from outside, injuring a friend’s lip. He alleged that protesters were called “Bangladeshis” and “Naxals” and threatened with remarks like “we will hang you all”. He claimed attempts were made to snatch their phones as they recorded videos. “Right now, we are in the studio, and no one is leaving; we have locked ourselves in,” Shivam said.

A second-year film student alleged that the ambulance carrying injured students was attacked by “ABGP goons” on its way to hospital.

An office-bearer of the Students’ Union, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said neither the organisers nor the attendees were students of the institute. “We were simply putting posters against this event on campus, and were totally peaceful,” the office bearer claimed, adding that five students were taken to hospital. The student said the administration has guaranteed their safety, “but we don’t feel safe on the campus”. 

The ABGP denies all allegations

The ABGP was founded in Pune in 1974 and describes itself as a voluntary body for consumer rights and awareness. It is seen as linked to the RSS.

Jayanta Bhowal, the ABGP’s West Bengal secretary, said around 300 members travelled from across the state for an awareness programme. He said some young men arrived shortly after it began and pasted their own posters over the organisation’s. “Some of our people suffered injuries, including a severed finger,” he said. He dismissed the videos and photographs of injured students as “mere allegations” and said the ABGP has video evidence it will present in due course.

Vijay Sagar, a member of the ABGP’s central executive committee, said the meeting was a training programme for karyakartas on consumer rights and laws. “The students were angry about why the ABGP got the hall to use, and they attacked us first,” he said. “We didn’t threaten or provoke anyone. But after we were met with violence, we can’t be expected to not retaliate.” He denied that ABGP members threw stones. “We don’t believe in violence. We believe only in dialogue.”

Dr Pankaj Kumar Roy, president of the West Bengal province of ABGP, told us that he had formally booked the SRFTI hall by paying for it, and that his event was to be held there. According to Roy, after the event began and the felicitation was over, around five students came into the auditorium. They pasted a poster that read, “Hindu Fascism, SRFTI Students Union”.

“When our workers questioned them, they said, ‘You are members of the RSS. We will not let you hold a meeting here.’ After this, more than 300 students came into the room. They tore up the posters and forced us to leave.”

Roy also claimed that he has received WhatsApp messages from teachers praising the students and that he saw a group that looked like a “group of Naxalites”. “We had rented the hall from the authority for a fixed time. We did not go there just to stand outside, but we couldn’t even begin the event. Only the felicitation had taken place. A Durga idol had been presented to the delegates, which was later broken.” 

Political fallout 

West Bengal BJP chief spokesperson Debjit Sarkar accused the students on X of being “Urban and Dimagi Naxals” who stormed the venue and tore down posters. He also shared a video with the claim: “Dimagi Naxals are kicking, spitting and tearing down the picture of Swami Vivekananda.”

Nachiket rejected the characterisation and said false information was being circulated in the media. “We are not affiliated with any organisation. A false narrative is being propagated against us in the media,” he said, referring to reports linking students to Left student outfit SFI. “We are simply an active student union working for the welfare of the students.” 

According to The Hindu, while one FIR was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by Sukanta Majumder, Dean-Film, SRFTI, the other was based on a complaint filed by Anjan Sinha, provincial head of the Akhil Bhartiya Grahak Panchayat, West Bengal chapter. The third FIR was registered on a complaint by Koushick Bose, Additional Officer-in-Charge, Panchasayar police station.

Newslaundry called the Panchsayar police station SHO’s phone number listed on the police website to ask about the details of the FIRs. The official who answered the call refused to comment.  

A quarter-century of Modi governance calls for questions and a hamper. To mark the occasion, we have offers for subscribers and other readers.