Mumbai: A controversy has erupted at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) in Mumbai after the Trombay Police registered a First Information Report (FIR) against at least ten students for allegedly organising a “peaceful gathering” to mark the first death anniversary of jailed Dalit activist and former Delhi University professor G.N. Saibaba on October 13.
According to the FIR, students were booked under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for “causing prejudice to the nation, promoting enmity between groups, and unlawful assembly.” Police sources told The Indian Express that the gathering was organised without prior permission, prompting the TISS administration to alert authorities.
Rita Nemlekar, VPO, Trombay Police Station, told The Free Press Journal that the FIR was filed on a complaint from the TISS administration, which claimed it had been unaware of the event and only learned of it through social media posts tagging the Mumbai Police and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
However, several students have rejected the allegations, calling them “false and misleading.” A student who attended the gathering told The Free Press Journal that around “10–15 individuals gathered on campus at around 7:30 pm on Monday to remember the late human rights activist, who passed away on October 12, to mark his first death anniversary.”
They described the event as a brief and peaceful commemoration, “They displayed a single printed photograph of Saibaba, nailed to a tree, and read three of his poems aloud before dispersing within less than half an hour. No slogans were raised, no names like Sharjeel Imam or Umar Khalid were mentioned, and there were no banners or speeches.”
Another student said, “The issue has been blown out of proportion. A sober, humble gathering in remembrance of a professor, who has been a subject of an unfair trial as noted by the Hon. Bombay High Court, and all the events that unfolded, is a reflection of the shrinking democratic spaces in elite higher educational institutions.”
Students reported that after a memorial for G.N. Saibaba, right-leaning peers vandalised his photograph, labelling them "Naxal sympathisers.” This confrontation led to administrative intervention and police questioning, affecting students' academic and emotional well-being.
The Progressive Students Forum (PSF) condemned police actions, claiming they undermined student expression and accused the administration of repression and coercion. They demanded an end to intimidation and highlighted broader institutional failures.
The PSF statement also claimed that the administration was carrying out a “witch-hunt” against its members by incorrectly accusing PSF of organizing the gathering. “This malicious targeting of student groups is a direct violation of the right to political engagement,” the statement read. The forum expressed worries regarding police interrogating the students and seizing their personal items, which it claimed constituted a breach of privacy and dignity.
Conversely, the Democratic Secular Students Forum (DSSF) distanced itself from the memorial, calling social media claims linking them to the incident “baseless” and asserting adherence to institutional procedures for campus discussions, according to a report by HT. Show-cause notices will be issued for alleged rule violations, while police presence remains significant on campus following the incident. Saibaba, a paraplegic academic, faced prior charges under UAPA before his recent acquittal.
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