Jadavpur University Removes Graffiti Amid Stunned Silence
Times of India | 30 August 2026
Kolkata: Jadavpur University (JU), the hotbed of protests, responded with stunned silence after the clean-up operation of graffiti on Saturday. Students and teachers were alerted of the clean-up but their cautious response or lack of it was a reflection of the mood prevailing on the ground.
An engineering student, who chose anonymity, said, “The university chose to whitewash the graffiti on a day when students will not be present on the campus. On a regular day, we could have urged the authorities not to erase every graffiti. But the truth is that at present no one is in a condition to protest and show resistance physically. The way the university and the students are being attacked and targeted is unfortunate. It is an uneven fight for us. Many students are being threatened. Already, FIRs have been filed against students. So we need to stay calm and cannot do anything that will invite a backlash.”
Film studies dept assistant professor Manas Ghosh said, “In all good university campuses around the world, various kinds of radical slogans are written. This is the beauty of a university campus. It shouldn’t be always thought of in the paradigm of statism or nationalism. But when an ultimatum comes from the state, it is not possible for the students or anyone to cling on to those graffiti and protest. I can only say that if such political repression continues, it won’t go in a good direction.”
English dept student Indranuj Ray explained, “The ground reality is not very conducive. Students, hostel boarders and organisations could have gone and resisted the authorities’ move today as they were also removing some non-controversial graffiti. But, we chose not to take such steps. The students and the organisations are being pragmatic and weighing their steps so that none of our action leads to backlash or targeting of individuals.”
Anubhab Gupta, a sociology student, said, “The authorities always succumb to external political pressure and erase the graffiti to avoid controversy. They did the same thing last time. We heard that our CM has called the walls of JU ‘anti-national’ and we apprehended that the graffiti, mural will be removed. We have always resisted repression through murals, graffiti and artwork and this time, too, we will reclaim and paint the walls again.”
Another English dept student, Udita Bedajna, feels, “The chronology of events in the past week has exposed the political situation. The way teachers and students, especially female students are being identified and targeted on social media and are being shamed has instilled a fear among many. FIRs and police complaints have also been filed against students and teachers. Students are therefore thinking twice before making a move against the authorities. However, those of us, who are not intimidated, see the whitewashed walls as clear canvas to start a new set of art work.”
A university official said, “When the CM of the state has directed us to remove those graffiti, we do not have an option.” A staff member added, “We have spoken to the students, made them understand the situation and then undertook the clean-up operation.”
Electrical engineering associate professor Arindam Sil said, “It is better to react to such a situation with silence or not react at all, as the allegations have nothing to do with the university as a whole in an academic context. The majority of the students and teachers are focused on their academics and research. I would urge students not to fall for any provocations at this time and to focus on regular classes.”
ABUTA general secretary Goutam Maity said, “The way the CM has branded the students and teachers as anti-nationals is a matter of grave concern.”