KOLKATA: The current and the former students of Presidency University, who were expelled from studentship and post-studentship academic activities allegedly for defacing an ABVP poster featuring Vivekananda’s image, have written to the dean of students challenging the inquiry committee’s findings and expulsion order.Pointing out that the process was a “violation of natural justice”, they have urged the dean to withdraw the expulsion order, the committee findings, and release all relevant documentation, including CCTV footage.Son of a senior Presidency official, who is in PG2 history now, also joined in the protest called by APDR, on College Street. “We are agitated and frustrated. We understand that this isn’t solely an administrative decision; we realize where the political pressure is coming from. We have never seen or faced anything like this before. We condemn playing with the careers of our classmates who have been expelled. We will definitely raise questions against this,” said the youth. Historian Goutam Bhadra and the expelled former student Olivia Banerjee also spoke at the event.The expelled PG student, who also joined, in her letter said, “I completely disavow the findings of the enquiry committee and the resulting disciplinary order. The entire process represents a grave violation of natural justice.The committee conducted its proceedings without adhering to basic due processes, denying me a fair cross-hearing, access to witness statements and minutes of the committee hearing, and the opportunity to present an adequate defense.The information collected from the CCTV was also not shown during the meeting to me, and I was accused of an act which I had repeatedly stressed that I was not involved in.” Olivia in her letter pointed out a “fundamental jurisdictional defect,” arguing that the university administration lacks the statutory authority to launch ex-post-facto disciplinary proceedings against an alumnus. “My graffiti directly called out ABVP for their casteist politics and violence against women. It was not a portrait of Swami Vivekananda. It was an ABVP political poster. This misrepresentation is a deliberate attempt to frame a manufactured narrative to penalise individuals for holding independent intellectual and political viewpoints,” she said.The university authorities did not want to comment on this.A protest letter signed by nearly 1000 ex-students and current students, including Tanika Sarkar, Jawhar Sircar, Tapati Guha-Thakurta was also sent to VC on Monday demanding expulsion revocation. “Our disapproval over the defacement of posters notwithstanding, the more serious matter remains the urgency and force of the disproportionate response meted out by the university administration in response to the incident,” it stated.
