Students of the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) have complained to the Kolkata Police cyber cell about alleged repeated threats on social media, as protests over campus security and the role of police at the institute continued on Saturday.
The students said they sent an email complaint to the cyber cell seeking action over the alleged online threats directed at female students. The complaint was raised during a press conference at the Press Club, where students also alleged that police were monitoring those participating in the campus movement instead of providing security to the institute’s vice-chancellor.
The protest has brought together the institute’s students’ union and an organisation of former students. They demanded the resignation of Vice-Chancellor Santosh Ajmera and the withdrawal of police from the campus. The demands come amid a wider breakdown in confidence between sections of the student body and the institute administration.
Students Nachiketa and Neelima, cited in the report, alleged that the vice-chancellor’s relationship with students had deteriorated. They said students no longer had confidence in him. The report did not provide details about the content of the alleged threats, the identities of those responsible or whether the cyber cell had registered a formal case.
Ajmera said institute teachers were speaking with students and listening to their concerns. He expressed hope that dialogue would help resolve the situation and allow academic activities to resume at the institute. His statement indicates that classes and other educational operations have not fully returned to normal amid the continuing dispute.
The institute’s registrar rejected the students’ allegation that their safety was not being addressed by the administration, calling the claim completely false. The contrasting accounts leave the immediate responsibility for student protection and the status of any police deployment at the centre of the dispute.
The cyber-cell complaint adds a digital-safety dimension to the campus conflict. Any further action will depend on the police response to the students’ email complaint and on whether the alleged social-media threats are formally investigated. The institute has said that discussions between teachers and students are continuing, while student groups remain focused on the vice-chancellor’s resignation and the withdrawal of police from the campus.
