Mumbai:

The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) has suspended a PhD student for two years for engaging in activities “not in the national interest” and cited instances like him who participated in Delhi protests under the PSF-TISS banner.

Ramadas Prinisivanandan (30), who is pursuing a PhD in development studies, has also been barred from entering TISS campuses in Mumbai, Tuljapur, Hyderabad and Guwahati.

In a notification sent to Prinisivanandan on March 7, TISS mentioned that events such as screening of documentaries like Ram Ke Naam before January 26 were a “disgrace and disgrace” to the consecration ceremony of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. A sign of protest.”

He was also accused of screening a banned BBC documentary on the TISS campus in January last year and organizing the Bhagat Singh Memorial Lecture (BSML) by inviting “controversial guest speakers”.

The statement said the issues were “very serious and it can be seen that you have knowingly and knowingly engaged in this illegal activity in the name of freedom of speech and expression.”

“Your activities are not in the interest of the country. As a public institution, TISS cannot allow or tolerate its students to engage in such anti-national activities and bring a bad name to the country. Therefore, all such activities are considered serious criminal offences. crime.

“The committee recommended suspension of your eligibility from Tata Institute of Social Sciences for a period of two years and banning you from all campuses of Tata Institute of Social Sciences, which has been accepted by the competent authority,” the TISS notification dated April 18 Read on the same day.

Priniswanandan, who hails from Kerala, said he would appeal against the suspension.

The Progressive Students Forum, a left-leaning student group to which Prinisivanandan belongs, said the demonstrations mentioned by TISS were linked to “anti-student policies in the form of national education policy.”

It also said that BSML was privileged to host renowned academics, academics and human rights activists, including two Ramon Magsaysay Award winners.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)