APU failed to stop ABVP violence, punished dissent instead: Panel

Bengaluru,

A fact-finding report released on Friday by members of various NGOs and civil society groups in Bengaluru found that Azim Premji University (APU) failed to prevent a mob from entering the campus and later took disproportionate action against students associated with the SPARK reading group. The report also condemned the alleged “mob attack” by ABVP members and demands to ban SPARK. Addressing the media, members of the fact-finding mission placed the incident within a broader pattern of attempts to silence dissent within educational institutions.

Speaking about the incident, fact-finding team member Madhu Bhushan said, “In speaking to the police, we found it was clear that what the ABVP students did was illegal and amounted to criminal trespass and rioting. They have a right to protest, but there is a process.” Members of the team were also critical of the university’s actions against students in the aftermath of the incident, alleging that APU failed to uphold its stated commitment to constitutional values and critical inquiry.

Arvind Narain of People's Union for Civil Liberties said, “They filed an FIR against students for asking questions, and that violates the very spirit of what a university stands for. Universities are spaces for cultivating inquiry and independent thinking. The attack was carried out by ABVP members, yet FIRs were filed against students who protested. The registrar of the university filed the FIR, and why he did so is a serious question.” Narain also quoted Rabindranath Tagore’s famous line from Where the Mind is Without Fear while speaking about the importance of academic freedom.

Among its findings, the report stated that police personnel admitted they were understaffed and unable to effectively de-escalate the violence allegedly carried out by the vigilante group. The report further noted that several students and faculty members viewed the FIR against SPARK-APU as a disproportionate response. It also criticised the constitution of the Special Disciplinary Committee, calling the process opaque and alleging that it contributed to rising fear and uncertainty among students and faculty.

Members of the team also alleged that right-wing groups were pursuing a calculated strategy to shrink democratic and academic spaces. According to the report, celebratory messages circulated in ABVP WhatsApp groups after the university suspended a student associated with the SPARK reading group. “This is part of a broader pattern in which right-wing forces are challenging expressions of dissent, opposition to militarism, and solidarity with oppressed communities,” said Suvrat Raju of Bahutva Karnataka.