Symbiosis teacher held for lecture in class, charged with hurting religious sentiments

“The incident was brought to our notice yesterday (Wednesday), so we immediately suspended him last night. He has been teaching at our institution since 2005. This was the first such complaint against him that was brought to our notice,” said SCAC Principal Hrishikesh Soman.

“As the institution is a grant-in-aid college, we have to follow government norms. A committee has been formed to take necessary action,” said Dr Vidya Yeravdekar, principal director of the Symbiosis Society and Pro-Chancellor of Symbiosis International University.

Speaking to The Indian Express before his arrest, Dhole said, “I was teaching Bhakti Rasa… I wanted to convey that we can worship any religion because they are all one and equal. But some students were displeased with me due to earlier incidents and amplified some of my comments differently… my intention was not to hurt religious sentiments. I want to apologise to whoever was hurt by my words.”

“I had sent some students out of the class a couple of times because of the nuisance they created. I had informed their parents… Maybe they were still angry about that. But they are still students and I do not want to escalate the matter further. All Gods are one. All religions are one. There should be no discrimination between people of different religions,” he said.

Dhole’s purported comments in the video form a part of the alleged objectionable remarks cited in the FIR, which also cites some other alleged remarks by him. “The accused has insulted Hindu religion and has intentionally hurt religious sentiments, mine and those of others,” it says.

“Representatives of various organisations approached us with a complaint. We conducted a preliminary inquiry and an FIR was registered. The faculty member was called for questioning and subsequently placed under arrest,” said Senior Police Inspector Vipin Hasabnis.

Dhole is expected to be produced before a court on Friday.

Among the various organisations which approached the police was the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, confirmed its members. Earlier on Thursday, the ABVP was among some outfits which staged a protest outside the college.

“By making derogatory remarks about Hindu deities, the faculty member has made an attempt to create disharmony among students. The students from his class shot the video and approached the ABVP. We met the college administration and they promised to take action within seven days. But it did not happen. So we decided to stage a protest and demand that an offence be registered against him,” said Anil Thombre, ABVP’s secretary for western Maharashtra.

(With inputs from Partha Sarathi Biswas)