Thrashed by BJP activists near JU campus, claims professor
Kolkata: A Jadavpur University teacher has alleged that she was "roughed up" by a few women activists of the BJP near the varsity campus for protesting against the disparaging remarks made against the institute and a particular community by a saffron camp member.
The BJP leadership, however, denied any involvement in the incident and said several "ultra-Left supporters" had staged agitation in the vicinity of a party meeting, near the campus, on Monday, but its workers maintained restraint.
Taking to Facebook, Doyeeta Majumder, assistant professor of the English department at the university, said, "On my way back from an anti-CAA rally, I ran into a saffron outfit at 8B, and got totally roughed up and hit by BJP 'bhodromohilas' (gentlewomen)".
Majumdar claimed that that the women were "baying for her blood" and the incident left her shuddering with fear.
"The saffron speaker was spewing naked hate speech...for a good few minutes, then turned and pointed at the campus and started saying 'this University is the root of all evil, they all chant Allahu Akbar every day'. I snorted out loud, and shouted 'mithye kotha' (lies lies) twice.
"That is all it took. In seconds I was surrounded by a mob of mashima-like (middle-aged) women who started pushing me down and hitting me. A young man tried to protest, he was roughed up too. Ultimately I was dragged kicking and screaming by two (presumably BJP) men who kept saying 'Didi ar jhamela baraben na, chole jan, chole jan' (didi please don't create further trouble, leave now).
The professor also said that she has filed a complaint with police along with two of her students, who had tried to help her and "got beaten up worse".
"Those women....were literally baying for my blood. I am fine, no lasting harm done, only shuddering at the infinite horrors in store for us," she wrote.
According to state BJP sources, party's Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta, Lok Sabha MP from Bongaon, Santanu Thakur, and senior state BJP leader Shamik Bhattacharya were among those present at Monday's meeting outside the campus.
"As we were conducting a meeting, some supporters of ultra-Left parties came near the venue and started raising slogans. They even pushed our cadres. But we maintained restraint. None of our cadres were involved in any assault," Bhattacharya said.
According to a senior police officer, barricades were put up between the members of two groups as they "engaged in sloganeering and counter-sloganeering".
"We put up a barricade between the two groups in order to avoid any untoward incident. Two complaints have been filed by a JU professor and some other members of the university. We are looking into the matter," he said, refusing to divulge further details.
Denouncing the "assault", the general secretary of Jadavpur University Teachers Association, Partha Pratim Roy, said, "One of our colleagues, Dr Doyeeta Majumder of the English Department, has been attacked by BJP activists at Jadavpur 8B. We strongly condemn this activity of the political hooligans."
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Who Crossed the Line in Davanagere?
If one closely observes the developments taking place within the state Congress camp after the by-elections, it becomes clear that in trying to justify one mistake as “right,” its leaders are only creating more mistakes. These by-elections, by themselves, are not capable of having any major impact on the state government. However, due to the missteps taken by Congress leaders, these elections have not remained confined to Davanagere and Bagalkot but have begun affecting the entire state unit of the party.
In Davanagere, the wounds the party inflicted upon itself have now worsened and started spreading like poison to other regions. Already, the AHINDA community, which feels it has been denied justice in ticket distribution, is hurting. Congress leaders are now adding salt to those wounds one after another. They are attempting to shift the burden of their own mistakes onto minority leaders and escape accountability. By putting those who have faced social injustice in the dock, branding them as anti-party elements, and attempting to politically isolate them, the Congress seems to be inviting a backlash.
If a socially and economically backward community, which forms the largest population in Davanagere, asking for a ticket is considered anti-party activity, then what meaning remains in the repeated claim of “social justice” that Siddaramaiah often speaks about? This is the question being raised by the AHINDA sections of the state. At the same time, the Congress has not clearly explained what social circumstances justify giving the ticket to the family of late Shamanur Shivashankarappa.
The Shamanur family, which belongs to the Lingayat community, may have made significant contributions to the Congress party. But the party, in return, has already given them enough positions and recognition. Now, asking minority and Dalit communities in Davanagere to sacrifice their opportunity for the sake of this family, and branding minority leaders who question this as anti-party, reflects poorly on the party’s approach.
Shamanur Shivashankarappa passed away as a sitting MLA. His son is already an MLA and has served as a minister. His daughter-in-law has been elected as a Member of Parliament from the Congress. Given the positions already held by the family, giving a ticket to a minority candidate would have been justified in every sense. If not, the Congress could have chosen a candidate from the Dalit community, which is the second-largest in Davanagere. Instead, by imposing an inexperienced grandson of Shamanur on senior Congress leaders in the region, the party leadership has effectively committed an act of betrayal.
Even after making such a serious mistake, the leadership is now attempting to cover it up by putting minority leaders in the dock, initiating inquiries, and using suspensions and expulsions to intimidate minority Congress leaders and workers. This reflects the depth of decline the Congress has reached in the state. People are beginning to wonder whether Surjewala and others are trying to rebuild the Congress in Karnataka by excluding minorities and Dalits altogether.
Even after deciding to give the ticket to Shamanur’s grandson, it was the responsibility of the Congress leadership to take local minority leaders into confidence and involve them in the campaign. However, minority leaders themselves have said that no one approached them or tried to persuade them to participate. This clearly shows the dismissive attitude that both the Shamanur family and the party leadership hold towards minority leaders and workers. Rather than saying minority leaders did not participate in the campaign, it would be more accurate to say that the leadership ensured they were kept out of it.
In connection with the developments in Davanagere, the party high command has announced disciplinary action against two leaders. Even in a court of law, when a death sentence is pronounced, the reasons for the punishment are clearly stated. Here, minority leaders are asking why they are being punished. They have raised several questions, and it is the responsibility of the Congress leadership to answer them.
When late Shamanur Shivashankarappa publicly called upon voters to ensure the victory of BJP leader Yediyurappa’s son, it was not seen as anti-party activity. When Rahul Gandhi and Siddaramaiah insisted that the caste census report must be implemented, Shamanur opposed it, yet even then it was not treated as anti-party behaviour. No suspensions or expulsions followed. Instead, his grandson has now been rewarded with a ticket.
But today, minority leaders who merely asked for a ticket for their community are being branded as anti-party and targeted for punishment. When they say they were not invited to campaign, the leadership should have questioned Minister Mallikarjun and his son as to why they failed to involve them. Instead, those who raised the complaint are being treated as the accused.
There is also talk that the Shamanur family had threatened to shift completely to the BJP if the ticket was not given to them, and that the leadership gave in to this pressure. If this is true, why is such a threat not considered anti-party activity? Why are minority leaders, who remained silent even after being denied a ticket, now being targeted as anti-party elements?
The Congress leadership must answer these questions. Only then will it become clear who actually crossed the lines set by the high command in Davanagere.
In conclusion, there is little doubt that the mistakes committed by the Congress leadership during the Davanagere by-election will cost the party dearly in the upcoming Assembly elections.
