A protest unfolded outside the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay on Saturday seeking the arrest of a professor and a guest speaker for allegedly glorifying terrorism while talking about the Palestinian freedom struggle against Israel.
According to PTI reports, Professor Sharmistha Saha of the Humanities and Social Sciences department of the prestigious institution and guest speaker Sudhanva Deshpande, during a talk under academic course 'HS 835 Performance Theory & Praxis' on November 6, had allegedly spoken highly of "terrorists" and armed rebellion. Protesters, organized under the Vivek Vichar Manch, claimed that Deshpande glorified Palestinian terrorist Zakaria Zubeidi, associated with the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, which has been designated a terror organization by several countries. The protesters also alleged that Deshpande admitted to meeting Zubeidi in 2015.
The demonstrators are seeking a thorough investigation into the phone calls and emails of both Saha and Deshpande to uncover the motive behind the November 6 talk. They are urging that Professor Sharmistha Saha be removed from her position at IIT-Bombay.
Students, who participated in the protest told news agency PTI that the talk was a blatant attempt to indoctrinate those studying at IIT-Bombay through hateful and false narratives. In a letter submitted to the police on November 7, some students claimed that Saha had used her position inappropriately to invite speakers like Deshpande, whom they labelled a "radical Leftist," for a virtual talk. They argued that such events have troubling consequences for the academic integrity and safety of IIT-Bombay, as they promote ideologies linked to terrorism.