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                                                                                                                                                    Bulletin: B/14/05/07

Artist's Freedom On Attack

 Protest against the arrest of Art Student & Suspension of Dean-Fine Art Faculty at Varodara, India

May 14, 2007

Protesting artist at Vadodara, India

Art student Chandra Mohan, who was arrested 5 days ago for exhibiting his art creations alleged to be obscene, has been granted bail.

Chandramohan,  a senior fine art student of MS University, was arrested on Wednesday 9th May 2007 and the exhibition attacked by the Saffron Brigade. The arrest triggered sharp protests from art students and the faculty and the dean of the arts faculty Shivaji Panikkar was suspended by the VC for rallying behind the protestors. A major protest by artists, activists and students at the college on Monday evening was called off due to massive police presence at the college.

Since the morning, outsiders had not been allowed to enter the campus of Maharaja Sayajirao University. Then ABVP activists started shouting for their protests outside the arts faculty, students formed a human chain to block them. Students, teachers and artists sat on dharna at the faculty on Fine Art at MS University at around 2:00 pm on Monday. They shouted slogan against the attack on Fine Art faculty by the Saffron Brigade on the campus. At about the same time, ABVP activists gathered outside the main gate of Fine Art faculty and raised slogan against the alleged obscene painting of art student Chandramohan.

They also made an attempt to gatecrash into the department but the police prevented them. About 100 AVBP activists were detained. Later, the students and teachers of the faculty and some artists came out the campus and formed a human chain to register their protest. But again a group of AVBP activists arrived at the spot and shouted slogans at them, creating a hostile atmosphere.

The police intervened the matter and made more arrest there after dispersing off the entire group of protesters.

Source: Global volunteers of Artilysis

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