The city-based Fergusson College on Monday cancelled a speech by former Bombay High Court judge B. G. Kolse-Patil, one of the main organisers of the controversial Elgaar Parishad held in December 2017.
Mr. Kolse-Patil, who had been invited by the college to deliver a lecture on “Indian Constitution from 1950-2018” was shocked when he found that the college administration had scrapped his talk without intimating him.
The retired judge accused college authorities of “caving in to right wing pressure” and alleged that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was attempting to stamp out every instance of dissent.
Mr. Kolse-Patil later delivered a 20-minute speech inside the college premises amid angry slogans raised against him by student activists affiliated to the fringe right-wing Patit Pavan Sanghatana (PPS).
The college witnessed some tension during the speech as students from Ambedkarite groups, who gathered to hear the retire judge’s lecture, faced-off PPS activists attempting to heckle the retired judge’s talk.
“I had no official intimation from Fergusson College that my lecture was cancelled…the present atmosphere is such that when reactionaries are invited for lectures in the college, they are eagerly welcomed, but the ruling powers [read BJP] immediately clamp down on people with secular ideals critical of the government, ” Mr. Kolse-Patil told The Hindu.
He further said that he had never faced similar trouble and had successfully given lectures in Fergusson College in the past.
Mr. Kolse-Patil had been formally invited by Dr. Ravindrasinh Pardeshi, Principal of Fergusson College, through a letter earlier this month.
“I take great pleasure in inviting you [Justice (retd.) Kolse-Patil] to deliver the lecture on the ‘Constitution: 1950-2018’ and guide students of Fergusson College,” reads Dr. Pardeshi’s invitation letter (in Marathi) to Mr. Kolse-Patil.
Dr. Sharad Kunte, president, governing body of the Deccan Education Society (DES) which runs the 134-year-old Fergusson College, said the right to grant permission lay with the DES and not with the principal. “There appears to be some miscommunication between the DES and the Principal regarding sanctioning permission for the event,” said Dr. Kunte.
During his brief address, he hit out at Prime Minister Modi’s dictatorial style of functioning, stating that the Modi-Shah duo were expanding their “Gujarat laboratory of baneful communal experiments” to other parts of the country.
“Today, judges who keep a photo of former Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief M.S. Golwalkar are elevated to Chief Justices. Institutional appointments are made solely on the basis of one’s affinity with the Sangh or the BJP,” alleged Mr. Kolse-Patil.
“We had secured permission for this event [Kolse-Patil’s lecture] a month ago and had circulated posters and pamphlets for the programme. The college had sent out a formal invitation, and yet they inexplicably cancelled it without any concrete reason,” said Sunil Jadhav, one of the student organisers.
“Each time, the authorities cave in to the pressure of rightwing groups like the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the Patit Pavan Sanghatana. What is the college scared of? Is it afraid that we are making students more aware of the Constitution and their rights?” said Kuldeep Ambekar, leader of the student wing of the Loktantrik Janata Dal United.
Recently, Mr. Kolse-Patil and retired judge P. B. Sawant, who were among the chief organisers of ‘Elgaar Parishad’ on December 31, 2017, were denied permission by the city police and the Pune civic authroities to stage a similar public event titled the ‘Yuva Jaagar Parishad’ on January 12 at Shaniwarwada Fort.
The organizers were forced to hold the event on the premises of the left-leaning Rashtra Seva Dal (RSD).