Vishwabharati University at Shantiniketan founded by Rabindranath Tagore was declared closed for indefinite period on August 17 as law n order situation there went completely out of control. Governor of West Bengal expressed grave concern about it first at 12.42 pm on August 17 & advised CM to intervene. Governor’s tweet also indicated that Chief Secretary, Home Secretary, District Magistrate & Superintendent of Police went uncontactable by Vishwabharati at the moment of crying crisis. As per instructions of National Green Tribunal, Poush Mela ground adjacent to University campus was being fenced around by the University Authority. Yesterday, hooligans attacked reportedly to break down the ground fencing. However, they bulldozed & uprooted not only the ground wall but even Gate No 6 of Vishwabharati campus. Ruling party dispensation claimed such hooliganism to be a spontaneous public outrage against fencing of the University Ground. However, it is unclear why was the Gate demolished.
West Bengal CM stated that people of Shantiniketan were emotionally attached to Tagore’s Vishwabharati & they couldn’t admit fencing of the Ground. She said Tagore wanted an open ground & so wanted the people of Shantiniketan. Even then, the need to bulldoze Gate No 6 remained unclear. It appeared symbolic as if they wanted to demolish Shantiniketan’s cultural ethos & the marks of Tagore. Not only Gate No 6, did they attack the soul of Bengal? Is it likely that people emotionally linked to Tagore’s legacy would demolish Vishwabharati’s heritage Gate so cruelly?
The ground was being fenced by order of National Green Tribunal as the campus-adjacent open ground was allegedly hampering campus-security as it facilitated free & smooth encroachment of outsiders inside the campus. Anti-social activities on the ground went on as a regular phenomenon. National Green Tribunal, hence, ordered fencing of the open ground as a protective solution against all such crimes. Was a protest thereof necessary? Even though a protest erupted, who bulldozed the Gate & why?
As per the claims of the ruling party, if the local people of Shantiniketan came to demolish the wall around the ground, why did they demolish the Gate? If they truly had attachment to Tagore’s tradition, how could they bulldoze the pre-existing heritage Gate? It’s also irrational that the Gate was ruined by instructions of the University Authority. Responsibility of University Properties’ maintenance vests upon the Authority itself which would surely be held accountable for any damage thereof. Hence, it’s unlikely that the University Gate would be demolished by the Authority’s own instructions. Doubts, therefore, are arising that goons demolished the Gate to put the Vice Chancellor into trouble as Vishwabharati VC took sincere initiative to fence the ground as per NGT instructions. It seems that fencing the ground would pose some serious challenges to the local network of rogue anti-social elements.
West Bengal CM stated that to carry on with Tagore’s legacy, Bhuban Dangar Math i.e. the University Ground needed to remain open & unfenced. She expressed dissatisfaction about the ground being fenced by the Vice Chancellor. However, whether Tagore himself would have objected against such fencing under similar situation, remains a question. Would Tagore have gone against the instruction of NGT? Though Tagore wanted an open ground at Vishwabharati, did he imagine unrestricted presence of anti-social elements there? Perhaps not.
Debjani Bhattacharyya