Protest near Academy against Srijato warrant

Kolkata: Kolkata's cultural fraternity assembled on Friday evening in front of the Academy of Fine Arts to protest the arrest warrant issued against poet Srijato Bandyopadhyay following a complaint lodged by a Nadia-based lawyer. This meet was organised by the Desh Banchao Gana Mancha.Srijato had posted a 12-line poem, ‘Abhisaap', after Yogi Adityanath was sworn in as Uttar Pradesh CM in 2017. Its last two lines courted legal controversy. Suman Bhattacharya of the Mancha said, "Today, the attack is on Srijato. Tomorrow it can be against any of us." Among many who protested were Parambrata Chatterjee, Saikat Mitra, Sujato Bhadra, Pranati Tagore and Anuradha Dev.Filmmaker Ananya Chakraborti said the warrant is "a step towards establishing fascism". Reacting to the event, Srijato said: "I am grateful to sensible fellow citizens." tnn