Satrangi, an LGBTQIA+ collective at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune, organised its annual Pride march on Sunday (April 6) on the campus premises.
The collective has been organising the march since 2019 as a collaboration between IISER’s social initiatives division for their college fest ‘Karavaan’ and the queer students on campus.
Meanwhile, a video of Sunday's Pride march was shared by a user on X (formerly Twitter), who claimed that "anti-Hindu" and "pro-terrorism" slogans were raised during the event.
He wrote, "IISER Pune was made by the Central Government for the promotion of science. But the director, Sunil Bhagwat, is instead allowing THIS anti-Hindu, pro-terrorism display deliberately on the day of #Ramnavmi! Then everyone wonders why China is ahead."
IISER Pune responded to the user through its official X handle and stated that no "anti-Hindu" or "pro-terrorism" slogans were raised.
"This video is from a march organised by our students within the IISER Pune campus in support of the LGBTQ community. Please note that there were no religious or anti-national slogans at the march," read the post.
"The term azadi was used in the context of freedom from prejudice against the LGBTQ community. This is an annual peaceful event by our student community to create awareness and promote inclusivity," it added.
The institute was applauded on X for taking a stance. A user wrote, "Not many institutes would have stood up to the homophobic bullying. Take a bow, IISER Pune!"
Another user commented, "This is how an institute takes a stand for its students. Thanks, IISER Pune."
"Very rare to see a science institute standing up for the basic rights of their students, this is very welcome. Kudos to the student community there for organizing this march and other events like Muktiparv fearlessly," a third user quipped.
Check out the reactions below:
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