Mumbai: The students of Mumbai’s Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS) and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, also celebrated the consecration ceremony of the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi in Ayodhya on Monday with a series of events.
Rathyatra, rangoli celebration, procession and live screening are some of the few events in which the students actively took part.
Celebration at TISS
TISS students organised Aarti (Hindu ritual) and chanted hymns to mark the day. “The students also organised a mass diya celebration (lighting up small clay lamps) to celebrate; they had adorned saffron outfits. A small sweet distribution ceremony was also carried out on the campus”, a student told The Free Press Journal (FPJ).
IIT Bombay organized Deepotsav
The IIT Bombay students also organised a series of events to celebrate the grand inauguration of the Ram temple. “A Gaushala (cow shed) was inaugurated in the campus at 2.30 pm, after which a Deepotsav (lighting of clay lamps) event was held”, a student told the FPJ.
IIT Bombay students also organised a procession a day before the inauguration of the Ram temple. Another student said, “I took part in the yatra which crossed several hostels and ended at the Devi Padmavati temple. The yatra started with a great pomp and show, with many faculties and students joining the event.”
There were also reports of IIT Bombay organising events like Geet Ramayan along with Ramdhun, in which a selection of songs and ‘Ram bhajans’ were to be performed on the campus. The event was unofficially organised on Jan 20.
Notice sent out to students
TISS also sent out notices to students, warning them to not hold any kind of protest against the consecration ceremony. Another notice by TISS talked about all events being suspended till further guidelines are issued, however, it was circulated in the context of movie screening.
Yatra held at Thakur College of Science and Commerce
On the other hand, Thakur College of Science and Commerce also took out a rally to show their support for the temple. The students were informed that the rally was solely for spiritual purposes and not to further any political agenda, they were asked not to engage in any kind of political sloganeering.
