Mamata threatens protests if Tagore’s name is not included in VB plaque
The Hindu
CM Mamata Banerjee threatens protests if Rabindranath Tagore's name not included in Visva-Bharati University plaques by Friday. Plaques are temporary, to be replaced by ASI's, which may take a year, says university official
The controversy over installation of plaques at Visva-Bharati University has turned into a full blown political war with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee threatening protests if the name of Rabindranath Tagore is not included in the installation by Friday.
Controversy first erupted when Visva Bharati put up marble plaques commemorating UNESCO’s ‘World Heritage Site’ title that bore the names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is also chancellor, and vice-chancellor Bidyut Chakrabarty, but did not mention Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.
“It is only because of Rabindranath Tagore that Santiniketan got the UNESCO tag. We were silent because of the Durga Puja. If you do not remove the plaques and put-up new ones with the Nobel Laureate’s name by 10 am tomorrow, our people will launch a demonstration holding Kobiguru’s photos to their chests,” the Chief Minister told journalists.
The Visva Bharati University authorities have called the plaques temporary and the crisis unwanted.
“These will be replaced as soon as ASI (Archaeological Survey of India) hands over formal plaques to us. What the ASI gives us will have to get UNESCO approval, which is likely to take time, maybe a year. It is unlikely what the ASI gives us will bear any person’s name, because that’s not how UNESCO usually describes a heritage site,” senior Visva-Bharati official told The Hindu on Wednesday.
On September 17, Santiniketan, a town set up by Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. UNESCO also credits “renowned poet and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore” for establishment of Santiniketan which is distinct from the “prevailing British colonial architectural orientations of the early 20th century and of European modernism”, and represents approaches toward a pan-Asian modernity.
Previously the Visva Bharati administration and Trinamool leadership were at odds over the varsity’s notice to Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen asking him to vacate a portion of land on which his house is constructed. The central university administration is embroiled in a legal tussle with Prof Sen. The administration claims that the land in question was illegally occupied.
“We are judges and therefore, cannot act like Mughals of a bygone era ... the writ courts in the guise of doing justice cannot transcend the barriers of law,” the High Court of Karnataka observed while setting aside an order of a single judge, who in 2016 had extended the lease of a public premises allotted to a physically challenged person to 20 years contrary to 12-year period stipulated in the law.
The High Court of Karnataka on Monday declined to interfere, at present, in the investigation against a Bharatiya Janata Party worker, who is among the accused persons facing charges of circulating obscene clips, related to “morphed” images and videos clips related to Prajwal Revanna, former Hassan MP, in public domain through pen drives and other modes.
The 16th edition of Bhoomi Habba was held on June 8, at the Visthar campus. The festival drew a vibrant crowd who came together to celebrate eco-consciousness through a variety of engaging activities, creative workshops, panel discussions, interactive exhibits and performances, all centered around this year’s theme: “Save Water, Save Lives.”