Azim Premji University files police complaint against ‘unauthorised’ event in Bengaluru campus

Bengaluru: Hours after members of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) staged a protest on Azim Premji University (APU) campus in Sarjapur Tuesday evening, the university registrar filed a police complaint against office-bearers of Spark Reading Circle, alleging they organised a programme without APU's prior permission.Tension prevailed on APU campus after ABVP activists barged in to oppose a scheduled discussion on Kashmir. 25 ABVP members were arrested on charges of trespassing and vandalism and released on bail Wednesday. As a precautionary measure, two platoons of State Reserve Police Force were deployed at the university.
In his complaint to Sarjapur police, APU registrar Rishikesh BS said the university administration had no prior knowledge of the event. The discussion at Kabira on APU campus was reportedly organised by Spark APU, a reading circle affiliated to All India Students' Association (AISA). Rishikesh quoted the complete text of social media posts put out by Spark Reading Circle in his police complaint. He further alleged that following the circulation of these posts, ABVP activists entered the campus, during which a student and a security personnel were attacked and boards and other materials vandalised.He clarified that Kabira is a designated space on campus for cultural activities and said, "We were never approached by Spark Reading Circle members nor was any written permission given to them. In the past also, Spark Reading Circle spread false and defamatory information about our institution. Now, they made communally hateful messages by taking the name of our institution."Based on the complaint, Sarjapur police registered a case against office-bearers of Spark Reading Circle under BNS Section 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings) and relevant provisions of Information Technology Act.