A number of artists had gathered in Vadodara to lend a helping hand to Mohan and the faculty, but could not enter following a notification from University officers.
VADODARA: Amidst tight police security, the gate at the Faculty of Fine Arts at MS University in Vadodara turned into a battleground, when a bunch of artists tried to enter the campus on Monday.
Ever since the controversy over the ‘obscene’ paintings by Chandra Mohan, a final year student of Master of Visual Arts, has come up, the university has witnessed a lot of activity. A number of artists had gathered in Vadodara to lend a helping hand to Mohan and the faculty, but could not enter following a notification from University officers. The notification stated that only faculty students and teachers who have identity cards should be let in the campus.
Being the last day of academic activities for final year students, the campus was abuzz with strong protests against BJP leader Neeraj Jain. It was Jain who had brought the police on the campus, which led to the arrest of Chandra Mohan for making ‘obscene’ paintings of Hindu and Christian deities. Students at the faculty condemned his entry into the faculty.
A poster rally was taken out within the campus with flashy slogans like “Arrest those who disrupted the examination”, “Art is not crime and artists are not criminals” and “Religion has encouraged art then why are politicians killing art in name of religion?”
Students also showed support for the suspended dean Shivaji Panikkar and demanded that he should be brought back even as GC Maheshwari, the newly appointed dean took over on Monday.
Members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad condemned the objectionable paintings. “The nude paintings are a mockery of Indian culture and insult Hindus,” said ABVP leader Mehul Lakhani. Later, protestors from both camps spilled out onto the streets.
“We were denied permission for a rally. It is amusing to see how swiftly the ABVP got the same permission,” a faculty member remarked.
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