Students protesting at the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) in Kolkata have alleged that the administration cut electricity to the only classroom they could access for internet connectivity and workstation facilities. The institute has denied snapping the internet connection and defended disciplinary action against the protesters, saying it was based on alleged misconduct and vandalism.
The students claimed the power supply to that classroom was disconnected on Saturday evening. They said this further restricted their access to basic facilities during the agitation.
SRFTI Protest: What Students Allege About Power and Facilities
The sit-in is an indefinite one, staged outside Vice-Chancellor Santosh Ajmera's office. According to the students, the administration has repeatedly limited access to facilities, including washrooms, during the protest.
The classroom in question matters to the protesters because it is the only space they could use for internet connectivity and workstation facilities. Cutting power there, the students say, left them with even fewer basic resources while they continue their sit-in.
Institute Denies Cutting Internet, Defends Disciplinary Action
The institute pushed back on the students' claims. It denied snapping the internet connection. It also defended its disciplinary action against the protesters, stating that the action was based on alleged misconduct and vandalism.
To put it plainly, the two sides are describing the same situation in very different ways. The students frame the power cut as a restriction on basic facilities during a peaceful protest. The institute frames its actions as a response to misconduct and damage to property, and denies cutting the internet.
Why the SRFTI Standoff Matters
This is a dispute over access and authority at a public film institute. The students say they are being squeezed out of the few facilities they can still use. The administration says it is enforcing discipline after alleged vandalism.
Neither side has publicly offered a middle ground in the accounts available so far. The sit-in outside the Vice-Chancellor's office continues, and with it the standoff over power, internet, and discipline at SRFTI.
Our Take: Both Sides Need to Show Their Cards
In our view, this dispute cannot be settled by claim and counter-claim alone. The students allege a specific act — power being disconnected to a classroom on Saturday evening. The institute denies cutting the internet but has not, in its public response, addressed the electricity allegation directly.
That gap matters. If the power was cut, the administration should say who ordered it and why. If it was not, the institute should say so clearly. On the other side, the institute's claim of misconduct and vandalism deserves a fair hearing too — discipline cannot be dismissed outright just because it is unpopular.
For readers, the takeaway is simple: a protest at a film institute has turned into a test of basic facilities and institutional authority. Students need power, internet, and washrooms to function. An administration needs order. Both can be true at once — but only if each side states the facts plainly instead of trading allegations.
