The Jadavpur University Special and 59th Annual Convocation turned embarrassing for both its Chancellor, who is also the West Bengal Governor, and the Vice-Chancellor today after they were confronted with protests and slogans by a large section of its students.
A call by the university authorities including Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi failed to pacify the protesting students who had called a boycott of the convocation.
The Jadavpur University (JU) management was embarrassed after Geetoshree Sarkar, a gold medallist and best student of the Bengali department, refused to accept medals and certificate in the presence of VC Abhijit Chakrabarti.
"I told the Governor that I cannot receive the medals and certificate in presence of the VC. The Governor then asked me to go away," Sarkar told reporters after coming down from the convocation dais.
Another PhD student Abhisek Mitra accepted his certificate, but raised a placard which said "Resignation, No Negotiation" (meant for the VC).
A large section of students and teachers wearing black badges protested demanding an impartial probe into the alleged police lathicharge on JU students along with the resignation of the varsity's VC.
The students had gheraoed the JU VC, registrar and others on the intervening night of September 16 and 17 demanding a fresh probe panel to investigate the alleged sexual harassment of a girl student inside the campus on August 28.
The VC had said he feared for his life and called the police, who intervened to break the gherao and arrested 35 students. Many of the students alleged they were brutally beaten up by police inside the campus at night.
