At IISER Pune, there’s a big event called Muktiparv happening from April 2 to April 14, 2024. Some people are worried because they think some speakers at this event are connected to Maoist ideas. This made a student group called Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) protest against the event.
The ABVP believes that having these speakers could change how students think about important issues. Atharva Kulkarni, who’s the ABVP State Secretary, said that these speakers could harm the good name of IISER and misrepresent Dr. Ambedkar’s ideas, which are very important for India.
To address these worries, the IISER administration explained that the Muktiparv program was approved and is led by students. They also decided to make changes by removing sessions with outside speakers to make the protesters feel better.
The Muktiparv program is meant to celebrate Dr. Ambedkar’s birthday and discuss important topics like justice, caste, and gender equality. This situation shows how schools sometimes face challenges between letting people speak freely and making sure everyone feels comfortable.
The ABVP also wrote a letter to local authorities asking them to stop speakers they think are too radical. This shows that the group wants to follow rules while still expressing their concerns.
In the end, the way IISER handled this situation shows that they’re trying to listen to everyone. They want to keep the important discussions while making sure the event is safe and respects different opinions.
