Kolkata16 minutes agoAuthor: Tirthankar Das
Jadavpur University’s wall writings were allegedly erased again late Tuesday night, with students claiming that people identifying themselves as Kolkata Police and Kolkata Municipal Corporation personnel entered the campus through Gate No. 4 around 12.30 am.
The development has triggered fresh controversy on the campus, with students alleging that the graffiti was removed without prior information or permission from university authorities.
RSF student leader raises questions
Revolutionary Students’ Front (RSF) Jadavpur student leader said they were informed around 12.30 am that several people had entered the campus claiming to be Kolkata Police and KMC personnel.
According to them, municipal workers had arrived to whitewash the graffiti, while police personnel were present to provide security.
Students allegedly prevented from leaving hostels
They later contacted other students staying in the hostels. However, they could not leave their hostels after receiving the information. Attempts to contact university authorities also reportedly failed, he said.
Students find graffiti covered with white paint
When students were eventually able to come out in the middle of the night, they allegedly found several pieces of graffiti covered with white paint. The Karl Marx quote written on Monday was also reportedly painted over. Students took photographs of the erased graffiti and sent them to Ray.
Student leader questions police campus entry
Ray later shared photographs of the erased graffiti on social media and questioned how police personnel could enter the university campus at night without prior permission from the vice-chancellor or registrar. He alleged that police require prior permission from the university authorities even to enter the campus during the daytime.
Registrar remains unavailable for comment
Repeated attempts to contact Jadavpur University Registrar Selim Box Mondal for his response reportedly went unanswered. The latest incident has added to the ongoing controversy surrounding wall writings and their removal on the campus.
Graffiti dispute continues after Sunday removal
The latest incident comes amid a continuing dispute over graffiti at the university. Following Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari’s directive, university authorities had whitewashed student slogans from several walls on Sunday. However, within 24 hours, graffiti reappeared on the walls, including a quote attributed to Karl Marx.
The SFI subsequently organised another wall-writing campaign, filling parts of the campus with fresh slogans.
Vice-chancellor appeals for campus dignity
On Tuesday morning, Vice-Chancellor Chiranjib Bhattacharya appealed to all groups to maintain the campus’s cleanliness, beauty and dignity.
He said he did not support indiscriminate wall writing, while stressing the importance of freedom of expression.
Students asked to use designated spaces
The vice-chancellor suggested that students should use designated spaces for expressing their views instead of writing slogans, graffiti or putting up posters on university walls and structures. He had not directly indicated whether the graffiti would be removed again.
However, within hours of his appeal, the graffiti was reportedly erased once again, this time during the late-night hours.
The second removal has sparked fresh questions among students over who authorised the action and how the workers entered the university campus.
