Headlines
139-day FTII strike ends, protests to continue
Pune, Oct 28 FTII students who went on strike
on June 12 against the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as its chairman
returned to their classes on Wednesday but said protests against the BJP
member will go on.
The Film and Television Institute of India
students said they will continue to protest in a "peaceful and
democratic manner" against Chauhan, who they say is not fit to head the
country's premier film institute.
Ranjit Nair, spokesperson for the Students Association, told IANS that the strike was over.
"We
have come to realize, after our long-stretched negotiations with the
government, that the government is a bully," a miffed Nair said.
He said the students will now invite people from all over the country who face similar problems.
"The strike will escalate now... It's time to register our protest all over again and take it to different heights," Nair said.
He said filmmakers and academics should come forward and take the protests forward in Mumbai.
The
students held multiple meetings with officials of the information and
broadcasting ministry but there was no end to the stalemate.
The government refused to buckle over Chauhan, forcing the student community to blink.
Chauhan
congratulated the students for ending the strike, and told IANS over
telephone that it was time for them to return to their classes.
The
decision to end the strike followed the government's "incongruous
approach" towards the students' cause, said another student leader,
Reema Kaur.
"The 139 days of strike have not only made us
stronger but more aware of the state that we today live in," said Kaur, a
final year student of editing and a part of the core committee of the
Students Association that spearheaded the strike.
"We voiced
ourselves loud and clear but it is the government's adamant stand and
incongruous approach towards our valid demands that has made us
completely lose faith," Kaur told IANS.
"Looking at the
ministry's unrelenting approach and the amount of our valuable time
spent, we have decided to end the strike and resume classes.
"However,
our voices will not shut, but grow louder. The protests shall continue
democratically and in the peaceful manner as they have," Kaur added.