Maharashtra government cancels ‘anti-national’ seminar at Mumbai University

Mumbai: Terming it ‘anti-national’, the Maharashtra government on Wednesday cancelled a seminar organised by the Mumbai University’s (MU) Dr Ambedkar Centre For Social Justice. One of the sessions in the seminar titled ‘Military Occupation in Kashmir — Sexual Violence on Kashmiri Women’ was cancelled.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Atul Bhatkhalkar raised the issue in the Legislative Assembly, following which state education minister Vinod Tawde said that the state government would ask the governor, who is the chancellor of MU to direct the vice-chancellor to hold an inquiry into the issue.

Mr Bhatkhalkar raised the issue of the national-level seminar organised by the Dr Ambedkar Centre on ‘Disparity, Discrimination, Deprivation and the Idea of Social Justice’ on Wednesday. The session on the Kashmir issue was in the afternoon.

Mr Bhatkhalkar said that Kashmir belongs to India and the Army is there to protect the country’s interest. “So the seminar’s session is anti-national,” he said.

He asked the government to intervene immediately and direct the university to cancel it.

Mr Tawde backed Mr Bhatkhalkar’s views and said, “The university is autonomous and this centre is independent. If the government interferes, these organisations allege that it’s breach freedom of speech. But this is an important issue and the government will ask the governor to look into it.”

He also directed the VC to take action against the people who had organised the session on Kashmir.