Tue Aug 19, 2008 8:00 am (PDT)
ABVP ransack Universities in Uttrakhand
1st August and 4th August are two different dates. In the same way H.N.B.Garhwal University and Kamaun University are two universities of Uttrakhand, situated hundreds of kilometers away from each other. But what happened in Garhwal University on 1st August08 was repeated with its enlarged version on 4th August08 in Kamaun University.ABVP-the student wing of the ruling BJP of Uttrakhand has given a call of 'University Gherao'(encircle the University) in both the Universities on the above mentioned dates. But what happened in the two prominent Universities of Uttrakhand was not just a 'gherao'.It started at the headquarters of HNB Garhwal University at Srinagar(Garhwal) on 1st August08.Nearly four dozen ABVP activists entered the Vice Chancellors office to submit a demand letter. But in spite of submitting the memorandum, with their very entry in the VC office they immediately started breaking the furniture, fans, ac,etc.They ransacked the VC
office with utmost ease despite the presence of the local police headed by the SHO.The proctor board of the University was not in a easy position to stop this vandalism of the student organization patroned by non-other than the state government headed by a 'strict' ex- military officer. The University lodged an FIR naming four ABVP leaders and others. But the next day ABVP was again in full swing claiming that they did all this in the interest of the students. Some of them even said that no hue and cry is needed if some furniture has broken as 'their' state government will allocate funds to the university to replace the broken furniture. The teachers and non teaching staff went on indefinite strike until the culprits were arrested whereas student organizations like AISA chose to expose the false claims of ABVP of 'student interests' amongst the students.
But all this opposition of students, teachers and non-teaching staff did not stop the ABVP from creating the same hooliganism in Kamaun University,Nainital just three days after their expression of muscle power in Garhwal University. Rather the Garhwal University incident seemed to be a rehearsal for them. In Kamaun University the hooliganism of ABVP was at its height as they ransacked the University administrative building for full two hours breaking whatever they could find there including computers,furniture,fans,acs etc. According to an estimate the total damage caused in this vandalism was of about Rs.50Lacs. At Kamaun University,Nainital also the local administration played the role of mute spectator. Nearly three hundred policemen with three Sub Divisional Magistrates were at the site of the incident but what they could managed to do, was to video graph the ABVP activist ransacking the University.
ABVP is the only student organization whose main office bearer-the president is not a student but he definitely has to be a teacher. Prof.Arun Bahuguna is the Uttarakhand state President of ABVP who is a professor at the Garhwal University and also happened to be the assistant chief proctor of the University. But he opted to turn his back towards the vandalism by the activists of his organization. To the contrary, some on lookers claimed that they had seen ABVP leaders marching to the University administrative building from the official cabin of Prof. Bahuguna .After students protested the hostile and irresponsible attitude of Prof.Bahuguna in this whole incident and demanded his removal from the proctor board, he resigned from the post of assistant chief proctor. But he never had any regrets to be the head of the organization which has ransacked the institution from where he earned bread and butter.
Despite FIRs lodged against the ABVP activists and demand of their arrest by the University teachers and non-teaching staff, they were given a free hand by the police and administration to roam around and claim that their was nothing wrong in vandalizing the Universities. The Chief Minister of Uttarakhand B.C.Khanduri who holds the portfolio of higher education maintained lip tight silence over the whole episode for nearly a week. When finally he opened his words, he said that he was trying to understand the whole situation from the higher officials and he would try to find solution of the student unrest. Two mainstream universities of this small hill state remained closed for nearly ten days, print and electronic media was overflowing with the news of this incident. It was very clear from the very first day that these incidents didn't occur because of any student unrest but the hooliganism of ABVP was responsible for it. Isn't it strange that in a
small state like Uttarakhand ,the Chief Minister who is claimed to be the most efficient administrator by the ruling party doesn't understands that what has happened in the two universities of the State?
Riding on the waves of people's anger against the misrule of Congress, the BJP came to power in Uttarakhand in2007.The BJP has then made tall claims of providing corruption free, crime free rule in the state under the able leadership of retired Major General B.C.Khanduri who has been the party's mascot for quiet long time. But after one and half years of BJP's rule all claims of clean administration has withered. One year ago when Khanduri gave cabinet berth to Madan Kaushik ,BJP MLA from Haridwar, Kaushik was welcomed with gun salutes in Haridwar by the people of liquor mafia. This was one of the rear occasions in the politics of Uttarakhand when bullets were fired in air to celebrate a political appointment. Madan Kaushik's name was again in the centre of controversy when the dead body of one Nilam Sharma was found in a park in NOIDA. Nilam Sharma was from Haridwar who was allegedly involved in call-girl racketing and land business. It was
said that she had close links with Kaushik who got rid of her as she was black mailing him for quiet some time.
A girl called Gita Kholia committed suicide in Pilibhit(U.P) and her mother alleged that Ajay Tamta-a minister in the Khanduri Government was responsible for her suicide.
A patwari(revenue police man) was thrashly beaten and his clothes were torn to pieces by BJP leaders in the Rudraprayag Collectrait in the presence of the DM, SP and quiet a large number of policemen on 23rd March07 as the honest patwari was a barrier for the BJP people in their evil designs. Not even a formal FIR was lodged by the district administration in such a serious incident of a government servant being assaulted by a mob lead by the local leaders of the ruling party. The victim patwari himself had to get the FIR lodged. An year later, acting on the FIR of the patwari, the revenue police arrested the culprits of the above said incident.But when the team of revenue police was heading towards Rudraprayag, the fleet of cabinet minister Matwar Singh Kandari stooped them, man-handled them and got the accused scot free from the revenue police custody. The Minister chose to part with the culprits of his party rather than parting with the duty
bound patwari. Same story was repeated in Dehradun by yet another cabinet minister-Trivendra Singh Rawat who forced the police to release a man held for selling illegal liquor. And this was not the end, the muscle man BJP MLA –Arvind Pandey also got scot free a criminal from police custody who was held in a case of attempting a murder. The High Court of Uttarakhand took self-cognizance of these incidents of bullying by the ministers and legislators of the ruling party.
But the notice of the high court did not stop the BJP from holding law and order to ransom. In July08 a dalit girl was gang raped in DehraDun and the name of a special invitee to the BJP state committee also figured in the list of gang rapists. The girl was taken to a hotel by one of her relatives with the assurance that he would get her a job there and then she was gang raped in the hotel and exploited physically a number of times. And lets not forget the student wing of the ruling party which is out bullying when the parent party is in power. Last year when Jitendra Rawat alias 'moni' won the election of the president of the students' union of DAV(PG)College,Dehradun,the ABVP was out in the city vandalizing petrol pumps, hotels and what ever they could find. As a result the president of the students' union had to spent his first night after election victory in the police lock-up. But the police had to bear the burnt of restraining the young
guns of the ruling party from creating nuisance. The SHO was immediately sent to police lines by the strict and discipline-loving chief minister. As far as the Universities are concerned,Khanduri wants to have his tight grip on, so he introduced the new universities act. But the students', teachers and employees resisted this autocratic act which intended to curtail the autonomy of the them universities. So it is quiet possible that this ransacking of universities by the student wing of the ruling party may had the intention of teaching a lesson to the university people who dared to oppose Khanduri's autocratic universities act.
What happened in the Garhwal and Kamaun University on 1st and 4th August are no separate incidents. Rather they are part and parcel of the whole package which the BJP has in its store for Uttarakhand. It is amply clear after one and half years rule of the large moustached retired major general that all the claims of clean, corruption free and crime free rule were all jaw-jaw exercise to win the seat of power. Rather the term 'crime free' appears to mean that the ministers,mla's,and leaders of the ruling party are free to commit any crime.
-Indresh Maikhuri,
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