ABVP protests over Lucknow university professor's remark on Kashi Vishwanath temple

A video clip of a remark by a Lucknow University professor has triggered a controversy with the ABVP staging a protest and filing an FIR against him for allegedly hurting Hindu religious sentimentsThe FIR against professor Ravikant Chandan was registered on Tuesday after a clip of his remark surfaced on social media the ABVPs Avadh Prant organisation secretary Anshul Srivastava told PTIThe Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad ABVP is a student organisation affiliated to the RSSThe Lucknow University administration has sought a written clarification from the professor but he said he has not received any such communicationDuring a debate on a social media platform I had quoted a popular story from the book Feathers and Stones by Pattabhi Sitaramayya regarding the Kashi temple demolition and building of a mosque professor Chandan told PTIThe ABVP and other organisations used part of the video to indulge in wrong publicity and instigated people leading to a mob gathering against me at the university on Tuesday and raising objectionable slogans he saidThe professor added that he could not independently corroborate the story which described a rape that took place inside the temple complex when Aurangzeb was passing through VaranasiChandan said the ABVP used a part of the video to indulge in wrong publicity and instigate people against himStudents of the university took offence over his remark and staged a protest against him the professor addedAccording to Srivastava the professor too lodged an FIR against ABVP activists and some students on Wednesday alleging that they tried to assault him and created hatred against him through social mediaProfessor Chandan however said that he had also lodged a complaint but no FIR was registeredOur objection was that without knowing the facts speaking on a public platform on the basis of a book is not right and it is least expected from a teacher It is not just ABVP activists but also common students and all those having faith in the Hindu religion and culture who will be agitated by it and comments in this regard started pouring in from the very first day Srivastava addedThe students wanted to express their objection in a peaceful manner before the proctorial board and ABVP activists were also present there and things could have been resolved if the professor had expressed regret over the same but he started sending messages to his people that there is an attempt to lynch him he saidProfessor Chandan a Dalit said he was asked to express regret over his remark but casteist remarks were made against him as wellSince I was sitting in the room with the mob knocking at the door I was disturbed and in that state posted on Facebook that it seems like they had gathered to lynch me I deleted it on objections from ABVP people but still an FIR was lodged against me he saidThe FIR was registered against the professor for allegedly hurting religious sentiments of Hindu students and disturbing communal harmony and tarnishing the image of the university by spreading propaganda through social mediaOn the ABVPs future course of action Srivastava said deliberations are on and that they are waiting to see what step the administration takes Otherwise students will be forced to stage a protest he addedThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever