Students held a protest against the scheduled visit of former Bastar IG SRP Kalluri, who has been called for a session on ‘Nationalistic Journalism’.

Ritam Halder
Hindustan Times
IIMC Delhi

Some students claimed they were not being allowed inside the IIMC campus. (HT Photo)

Chaos ensued outside at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication(IIMC) here as some students were not allowed to enter the campus ahead of IPS officer SRP Kalluri’s visit on Saturday. Amid heavy police security, students protested outside the campus gates within the compound of the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

The IPS officer who had a controversial tenure as IGP in Bastar was called for a talk in one of the session on Nationalistic Journalism in Current Scenario: Media and Myth. Kalluri was transferred out of Bastar on allegations of human rights violations against tribals in Chattisgarh.

Holding placards of ‘Kalluri Go back’, the students protested Kalluri’s visit to the centre and demanded him to go on ‘long leave’ till the completion if National Human Rights Committee inquiry. There were around 20-25 police personnel at campus.

We will oppose this forced saffronisation. We might be 15-20 but still not being allowed to enter,” said Sachin Shekhar, an IIMC student. The students are also agitating against a havan, which kicked off the day-long seminar.

 

One of the organizers told HT that the havan was done at the start of the seminar, as per schedule. “Instead of lighting a lamp, we did a havan. What it wrong on that?”
 
Accusing the organisers of not allowing students to attend the session, Dipankar Patel, a student, said, “We want to know too what this nationalistic journalism is. Let us enter, engage in dialogue.”
 
One of the organisers claimed that most of the protesters were not students of the institute. “Most of these are external elements, from JNU. Barely 2-3 students are here. We don’t want this unnecessary chaos inside the venue,” said Praveen, one of the organisers.
 
Another student Ankit Kumar Singh asked: “What are they doing inside? Are they conducting some kind of Bali (sacrifice)? Why current students like me are not allowed to enter? This is horrendous. And that too in a journalism training institute”
 
Till 12.15pm, Kalluri was yet to reach the campus.
 http://www.hindustantimes.com/delhi-news/iimc-delhi-students-protest-top-cop-srp-kalluri-s-visit-allege-being-denied-entry-in-campus/story-eI36zAywqk9YbigB0nb28H.html