Now Reading: SRFTI clash: students, right-wing group trade allegations of violence
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SRFTI clash: students, right-wing group trade allegations of violence
The Story in Brief
A clash broke out on Sunday, 27 September, at Kolkata's Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) between students and members of the Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat (ABGP), a group described as part of the RSS Parivar. Students alleged ABGP members called them anti-nationals, Naxalites, and terrorists and attacked them with sticks, stones and knives. ABGP said it had paid Rs 15,000 to legally rent the auditorium and that students attacked first, damaging a portrait of Swami Vivekananda.
Police were deployed as students blocked the gates. Four ABGP members were hospitalised. Students reported around 30 injuries and said female students received rape threats. Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap reacted on social media, saying, ‘This is what they stole the votes for in Bengal.’ SRFTI said the situation was under control and no serious injuries had been reported. FIRs have been registered and an investigation is underway.
Update, 30 September 2026: NDTV, Hindustan Times, and Mathrubhumi report students claimed rape threats and around 30 injuries. ABVP said posters of Swami Vivekananda were torn. India Today and Hindustan Times say FIRs have been registered and police are investigating. Hindustan Times reports an SRFTI official said no serious injuries had been reported.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The pro-government coverage from ABGP and ABVP affiliates blames left-wing students for disrupting a legally booked event and damaging sacred symbols, while student accounts from National Herald, DW, and Mathrubhumi foreground unprovoked attacks with knives, rape threats, and police inaction. Hindustan Times and India Today carry both versions in straight news style, and Anurag Kashyap's comment injects a political dimension that some outlets amplify and others omit. The uniform thread is the conflicting accounts, the FIR and police investigation now become the next step to watch for a determination of what happened.
The police investigation and any subsequent FIRs will determine which account holds.
Coverage: 12 sources, 4 government-critical, 8 neutral
Sources (12): indiatvnews.com (neutral report), indiatoday.in (neutral report), nationalheraldindia.com (government critical), timesnownews.com (neutral report), abplive.com (neutral report), ndtv.com (neutral report), hindustantimes.com (neutral report), mathrubhumi.com (government critical), dw.com (government critical), indiatoday.in (2) (neutral report), hindustantimes.com (2) (neutral report), mathrubhumi.com (2) (government critical)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 12 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Methodology and corrections.
