Students at the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) in Kolkata have alleged that a security guard secretly recorded them, including women, while police personnel deployed on the campus also photographed and filmed students, escalating a prolonged dispute over safety, privacy and institutional control.
The students said the incident involving the guard took place around midnight on Wednesday, when a group confronted him after allegedly noticing that he was recording videos with a mobile phone concealed in his pocket. According to the protesters, the guard initially refused to show the phone but later handed it over in the presence of a security supervisor.
The students said an examination of the device allegedly showed videos of students speaking on the phone and conversing among themselves, including women. They described the alleged recordings as a violation of privacy, dignity and safety, and demanded accountability and an immediate end to what they characterised as intrusive surveillance and intimidation.
The protesters also alleged that police personnel deployed on the campus since Tuesday night to provide security to the vice-chancellor had been photographing and recording students. They said the recording continued even after the institute head left his office in the evening.
SRFTI registrar Deepak Kumar said the police had been deployed to ensure the safety and security of students, faculty members and staff residing on the campus. He referred to alleged incidents of intimidation, physical abuse and vandalism at the vice-chancellor’s office, as well as a torch march on October 27, which he said had created fear and panic on the premises.
Kumar said students continuing to occupy the campus despite orders to vacate were engaging in what he described as illegal occupation. He said security personnel had been asked to maintain video and photographic records of movement in public areas to prevent further damage to the institution and protect people, arguing that the institute could not install closed-circuit cameras because of opposition from students.
The registrar said the police deployment would be reviewed periodically and that necessary action would be taken according to the rules. The competing accounts have placed the use of recording and surveillance at the centre of the dispute, with students questioning whether security measures are being carried out with adequate safeguards for privacy and consent.
The allegations come amid a standoff between the administration and protesting students that began after alleged attacks on students by members of organisations linked to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on September 27 and October 4. The report does not establish the outcome of any investigation into those alleged attacks or the recordings.
Vice-chancellor Santosh Ajmeera said faculty members were engaging with students and working to restore normalcy on the campus. He also said SRFTI students and faculty members would not represent the institute at two upcoming film festivals, with counterparts from the Film and Television Institute in Itanagar attending instead.
Ajmeera said 40 students and three teachers from the Itanagar institute would join the Dharamshala International Film Festival, which was scheduled to begin on October 29, while SRFTI’s representation at external forums had been deferred in view of the prevailing situation.
