Students of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), agitating against the controversial appointment of TV actor-turned-BJP leader Gajendra Chauhan as the institute’s chairman, have now threatened to go on a hunger strike if the Centre failed to resolve the 88-day impasse.
The pronouncement threatens to aggravate the tension between the Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry and the agitating students even as rumours abounded in the national capital that the Ministry could keep Mr. Chauhan away from academic affairs in the strike-beleaguered institute to end the impasse.
Addressing a press conference on Monday, the FTII Students’ Association (FSA) said they would be forced to take this strike if the Centre failed to resolve the contentious issues that spurred their indefinite agitation. The students have demanded the revocation of Mr. Chauhan’s appointment as chairman and the dissolution of the FTII governing council.
“We have written at least 15 letters to the government so far. But have not received any reply to any one of them. What kind of government have we elected? A government which is silent and doesn’t let creativity prosper?” said the delegation of students, spearheading the strike.
On Sunday, the Pune Police issued notice to Abhijit Das, a contract faculty member, who began a fast on the institute premises, seeking “immediate resolution” of the current impasse.
Meanwhile, in a related development, the Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a plea seeking judicial intervention into the deadlock. A public interest litigation seeking the Apex Court’s intervention into the FTII row was filed by a Delhi-based advocate, Vineet Dhanda, who contended that the ongoing strike was adversely affecting the students’ careers while bringing disrepute to the institute.
