Mourning for Mudasir

[toujours_nigel]

Mudasir Kamran was taken to the police-station on Friday. He died on Saturday. There was a candle-light march on Sunday. Classes were stopped on Monday. On Tuesday. On Wednesday. On Thursday we had an open forum; in the evening the V.C finally deigned to speak to protesting students, and then ran away mid-negotiation left escorted by security through the back-door. On Friday she announced that there would be a null semester from Monday, should classes not begin. We have never heard of this option before, though classes have been suspended earlier for longer periods and for other reasons; but it does neatly make the issue academic. To disrupt classes has never been the goal of this protest, and prior to the V.C's Great Escape we had hoped to be in class ourselves from Friday; instead we find ourselves villainised.

 

On Monday we might have class. There will be police on campus. Some students have petitioned for class, so I hope they will be happy. We have been told that we are making it a Muslim issue, a Kashmiri issue. Mudasir was a Kashmiri Muslim, but apparently to bring out these things is an act of indiscipline and indecency. (We will not go into the homosexuality issue, and one hopes that the mental disorder issue does not need to be discussed.)

 

The member of faculty implicated in these things is to be investigated by a committee yet to be constituted; he has not been suspended, but since he is on leave our V.C opines that that need not happen. Proctorial duties have been (unofficially) handed on to another faculty member.

 

On Monday there will be class. Libraries will be open. The 'net lab. will be accessible. Everything will return to normal. Oh, and a boy is dead by his own hand, who the administration handed over to the police as their first reaction upon hearing that he was physically violent towards a friend, without investigating the matter, without reprimanding the student, or offering him counselling.

 

But on Monday there will be classes.

There's a fair bit of literature being produced about this by the protestors, but most of it is on FB. So, here's one that isn't: http://kafila.org/2013/03/05/on-the-death-of-mudasir-kamran-achuth-ajit-and-ria-de/

Comments

[dhobikikutti]

Are there any factual accounts of the incidents that led up to the police involvement?

[toujours_nigel]

I'm not sure what factual would mean for this right now, since the admin is saying something completely different than student eye-witness accounts, and the other boy involved in all of this cannot be found.

[dhobikikutti]

I haven't actually come across any student eye-witness accounts. Right now all I know is that there was some sort of physical altercation.

[toujours_nigel]

http://kafila.org/2013/03/05/on-the-death-of-mudasir-kamran-achuth-ajit-and-ria-de/#comment-47392

http://www.sify.com/news/mourning-mudassir-s-suicide-the-tragic-tale-of-a-kashmiri-student-news-columns-ndjazPjbdhd.html

http://www.indiaresists.com/meanings-and-words-after-the-death-of-mudasir-kamran/

this is what I have right now.

[dhobikikutti]

Tonisha's piece replicates the words of this post - were you quoting her or did you co-write the piece?

Also, thanks for the links. I think this is a really difficult issue to pass judgement on even were all the facts to be in order. I also really hope the other student has access to caring and concern.