The Students Federation of India (SFI) on Saturday suspended three of its activists for burning the chair of the Principal of Ernakulam Maharaja’s College in protest against her alleged derogatory remarks about a section of the students.
The suspended students include Vishnu Suresh, Afridi K.F., and Prajith K. Babu. They were held responsible for burning the chair of N. L. Beena, the Principal, following a protest held on the campus on Thursday. A release issued by the SFI said here that it would not support such a strike tactic even though it had organised protests against the anti-student stance taken by the Principal.
The SFI had only decided to organise a march expressing solidarity with the protest organised by a teachers’ organisation. But the immature handling of the situation by those who led the protest resulted in the unfortunate incidents. The federation issued a stringent warning against its Maharaja’s College unit for not objecting to the burning of the Principal’s chair, the release said.
The All Kerala Government College Teachers Association (AKGCTA) had alleged that the Principal had made a statement that girls come to the college to cosy up to male students. However, Ms. Beena had denied the allegations, saying that she had, in fact, advised students to focus on studies, instead of wasting time while on the campus.
Even though the AKGCTA had organised the protest against the Principal, several of its members had participated in a meeting held on the campus condemning the burning of the chair of the head of the institution.
A memorandum signed by 137 teachers had demanded stringent action against those behind it. They had also expressed concern over the violence allegedly unleashed by SFI activists on the campus with the support of some teachers.
The police had registered a case against nearly 30 members of the SFI for destroying public property.
