Protests erupted at Azim Premji University in Sarjapur following accusations by Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) members that a student collective attempted to organize an “anti-national” seminar related to Jammu and Kashmir. The university clarified that it had not sanctioned any such event.
ABVP activists forcibly entered the campus, chanting slogans, and staging demonstrations both inside and outside the university gates. They vandalized property, defaced the university’s signage with ink, and spray-painted “Ban SPARK” on walls. The activists demanded disciplinary action against the organizers and called for a ban on the student collective.
The demonstrators displayed posters condemning the seminar’s organization, waved national flags and ABVP banners, and staged a sit-in within the premises. ABVP banners indicated that the protest was against alleged anti-national Kashmir separatist forces at Azim Premji University in Bengaluru.
According to ABVP members, the controversy arose from an event purportedly arranged by a student collective called SPARK to commemorate the Kunan Poshpora incident of February 23, 1991. The ABVP alleged that the planned seminar was disrespectful to the Indian Army and promoted separatist ideologies, claiming it depicted Jammu and Kashmir as separate from India.
Reacting to the situation, Bengaluru Rural SP Chandrakanth M.V. mentioned that the protesters were taken into preventive custody, and precautions were taken to maintain law and order. The investigation into the matter is ongoing to address the issue comprehensively.
The university, in a press release, stated that the group had forcibly entered the campus, vandalized property, and assaulted security personnel and students. The institution emphasized that it had not authorized any event of such nature, following strict procedures before permitting any campus event. The university condemned the violence and disapproved of the external group’s actions that caused damage and disruption on campus.
