One person has been arrested, and seven first information reports (FIRs) have been filed following violent clashes at Jadavpur University in Kolkata, where students were demanding the immediate announcement of student union election dates, India Today reported.
The violence broke out on Saturday, March 1, when students — primarily affiliated with Left-backed organisations — confronted West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu during his visit to the campus, urging him to announce the election schedule on the spot, as per The New Indian Express. Basu, however, stated that the decision required consultations with senior officials.
The protest escalated as demonstrators allegedly vandalised the venue, damaged the minister’s vehicle, and set the university employees’ office on fire. Several professors were reportedly assaulted, The New Indian Express stated. A student was hospitalised after sustaining injuries in front of Basu’s car.
The incident triggered tensions between the protesting students and members of the Trinamool Congress-backed West Bengal College and University Professors’ Association (WBCUPA).
“We only wanted to know when student elections would be held,” a leader from the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) told The New Indian Express. “But TMC supporters attacked us.”
Trinamool Congress spokesperson Kunal Ghosh condemned the violence, asserting that while his party does not believe in revenge, such actions were unacceptable. “A minister’s car was ransacked while he was inside. Any unfortunate incident could have happened,” the Times of India quoted him as saying.
Later, on Sunday, students gheraoed the Jadavpur police station, while separate marches were held by both Left organisations and Trinamool Congress workers outside the university. The SFI has since called for a strike, scheduling it for today.
Basu, maintaining that he was open to dialogue, criticised the disruption. “They could have presented their demands formally, but they chose disruption,” The New Indian Express quoted him as saying. He also instructed university officials not to involve the police in campus matters.