Suspended TISS student Ramadas K S.
Credit: X/@MumbaichaDon
The Tata Institute of Social Sciences has released a public statement after controversy arose regarding news of the institution suspending a PhD scholar across all of its campuses for taking part in a protest against the controversial National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
Ramadas is a member of the Students' Federation of India (SFI), the students' body of the CPI(M). The party has condemned the decision by TISS in a post on X while also calling for the same to be revoked.
In the notice, the TISS administration has called the media reports of Ramadas K S being suspended as "malicious propaganda".
The notice goes on to say that Ramadas' focus shifted from studies to 'events, protests, and other activities influenced by personal political agenda', and that despite a number of warnings, both verbal and written, he failed to comply with the same.
'Screened films deemed propaganda by government'
The notice further claims that Ramadas, in January 2023, had streamed a BBC documentary banned by the Government of India for being a "propagangda movie of western media".
Ramadas allegedly also shared online pamphlets for a screening of the Anant Patwardhan documentary Raam ke Naam during the Ram mandir consecration ceremony in Ayodhya.
The notice claimed that both screenings were not authorised by the TISS administration.
Overstay at hostels
Ramadas, the TISS notice claims, "continued to overstay unlawfully in his allotted hostel at TISS, Mumbai Campus" despite multiple reminders being issued to him. With this action, the administration says that Ramadas "seriously and genuinely" deprived other deserving scholars waiting for said facilities.
'Disruptive midnight protest'
TISS claims that in March 2023, Ramadas had tried inviting 'controversial' speakers for Bhagat Singh memorial lectures, but permission for the same was denied by the administration since the event was not being organised by the official students' union of the institution.
After this, the notice says, Ramadas resorted to a midnight protest outside the residence of the then Vice Chancellor, thus "demonstrating disregard for basic human rights". The notice claims that "this unruly agitation caused serious disruption, anarchy, and mayhem".