Voicing dissent in Maharaja’s College
KOCHI: Does it matter if a girl sits beside a boy? Apparently, in Maharaja’s College it does. The college entrance is covered in posters against principal N L Beena. “Do we need a moral police as our principal?”, “We will burn the thrones of power and pride” shout some of these posters.
The outburst began a week back when the principal commented that girls come to college to cosy up with male students. “A few students were sitting at the usual hangout spot in the college when the principal arrived there all of a sudden and ordered the guys to leave. She then called the girls to a class and mocked them in front of the students there,” says Ganga A Kalappat, lady representative of the college union.
The comments made by the principal irked the students who voiced their dissent. “This isn’t the first incident,” says Pious Sunny, a student. “We have been facing such problems for past two years. This is a matter of shame for a college which has a legacy of free thinking,” he adds.
Meanwhile, principal N L Beena said that she is being framed. She alleged that the students and teachers’ associations are deviating from the main issue. “The students, who were engaged in indecent acts in the veranda, were disturbing a class nearby. I scolded them and sent them back to their respective classes,” she clarified.
Social media takes up the issue
The issue has become a hot topic in the social media with many alumni voicing their opinions. Sharing his view on the issue, Aashiq abu says, “I am a former student. The latest issue is very unsettling. One wonders why such things happen in this so called progressive community.”
Activist and feminist, Sulfath teacher says, “This is the 21st century, but our educational institutions are still stuck in the past. Authorities as well as teachers must accept the new definition of morality. Male-female interaction needn’t necessarily be sexual in nature. When we acknowledge and support interactions can progress happen.”
“Campus is a creative space meant for multicultural interactions. It is dangerous when people who are expected to be intellectually sound are behaving this way. Imposed morality of the powerful which curtails the basic rights of individuals shall not be entertained. I think autonomous status of the campus has led to this,” says Archana Padmini, actress and ex-student.
The issue took a violent turn on Thursday with the students burning the principal’s chair. “It’s not just about moral policing. The rage you see is the byproduct of the way she had been treating the students for past one and a half years,” says Aswin Dinesh, college chairman. He adds, “The protest will continue until she resigns.”