The Azim Premji University has filed a complaint with the police against its own students who are in charge of the Spark Reading Circle APU, accusing them of instigating trouble at the university and repeatedly “defaming” the university.
APU Registrar Rishikesh BS filed a complaint with the Sarjapura police on February 24, the day ABVP members forcibly entered the university over a planned discussion on alleged violence in Kashmir. The complaint names the Spark Reading Circle APU Instagram account.
Rishikesh said in his complaint that on February 24, social media posts regarding an event on that day at Kabira, an open space on campus to cultural events, were brought to his attention.
The organisers of the event, Spark Reading circle APU, had created a post that said that Kunan-Poshpora, villages in Kashmir, saw “one of the most gruesome incidents of mass rape” on February 23, 1991, allegedly by army men and that not a single conviction had taken place.
He said that when he asked faculty members about such an event, none of them had any information because “if any such event is to be held written permission has to be sought, but no such permission was sought or given”.
Rishikesh said that soon after this, a group of people forcibly entered the university campus and vandalised property in several areas, raised slogans and wrote graffiti against Spark Reading circle and AISA. The police then removed them from campus, the Registrar said. A complaint regarding this was filed with the police.
All India Students Association (AISA) is the student wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation.
Maintaining that there is no connection between the Instagram account Spark Reading circle APU and APU, the Registrar said, “A few people who opened an Instagram account, intended to hold an event as stated above and because they issued an invitation it created enmity between two groups which led to the activists of an organisation illegally entering campus and creating a ruckus as stated above.”
Rishikesh also accused Spark of “defaming” and “hurting the reputation” of the university on several occasions in the past. “Now, they have posted content that creates enmity between groups and misused the name of our university on social media,” he said, urging the police to determine the people behind the Instagram account and take action against them.
Based on the complaint, the police have registered a case under Sections 66E (violation of privacy) and 67 (transmitting obscene material in electronic form) of the Information Technology Act, and Section 229 (giving false evidence) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Police have already arrested about 20 ABVP activists for forcibly entering APU, assaulting a student and security guards, and vandalising university premises.
