Hindutva mob barges into FTII Pune, burns down poster about Babri Masjid demolition

NT Bureau, Agencies

Pune: A group of men allegedly belonging to Hindutva outfits on Tuesday barged into the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune and burned down a poster about the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992, reports Maktoob Media.

Social media videos captured the men entering the campus, chanting slogans such as "Jai Shri Ram" and expressing support for the 17th-century Maratha ruler Shivaji.

The footage also showed some of the individuals burning the poster that read, "Remember Babri, death of Constitution," and destroying a board displaying eventrelated photos.

The targeted individuals reportedly included the student union president Mankap Nokwoham, General Secretary Sayantan Chakrabarty, and two others, including a female student, who have been hospitalized, as per Maktoob Media's report.

According to The Indian Express, the police informed that some students have undergone medical examination, and the reports are awaited to confirm if there are injuries.

An official from the Deccan Gymkhana police station stated, "Some members of various right-wing outfits entered the FTII campus on Tuesday afternoon and took down the banner and set it on fire while chanting slogans. At this point, a clash broke out between the members of the rightwing outfits and a group of FTII students," reported The Scroll.

Senior Inspector Vipin Hasabnis, in charge of the police station, mentioned that the police intervened upon receiving information and managed to bring the situation under control.

A student, speaking to Maktoob Media, alleged that the mob entered the campus despite the presence of over a dozen security personnel.

The student further accused the police of complicity.