Bengaluru: BJP MLA, workers target Srishti school over PM Modi’s portraits

BENGALURU: BJP workers created commotion at a premier art school in Yelahanka on Tuesday after they found that two portraits of Prime Minister Narendra Modi had been painted on walls of an adjacent building.
The portraits, near the Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, had the caption “Sab Changa Si”, a cheeky reference to Modi’s speech at ‘Howdy, Modi!’ event in the US last year.The BJP workers, led by Yelahanka legislator and chief minister BS Yediyurappa’s political secretary, SR Vishwanath, said the paintings were “cartoonish and insulting”, and blamed the institute’s students.
They covered the street art with saffron paint and warned the principal against allowing students to protest the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. There were no direct references to CAA on the street art.
The BJP group resorted to strong-arm tactics, getting two-wheelers of students and faculty members that were parked outside the campus towed away. Following the episode, Srishti suspended classes till January 17.
At the Houston event last year, Modi had said “All is well” in India in various languages, including Punjabi.
Contrary to reports from the scene and students’ accounts, MLA Vishwanath claimed there was no ruckus and “everything happened in a cordial manner”. He told TOI he went to the institute shortly after noon after complaints of traffic snarl-ups in the area. He and his supporters complained to the management about vehicles parked outside the gate. The graffiti issue, Vishwanath claimed, came up during this conversation.
Srishti’s founder-director, Geetha Narayanan, said the group remonstrated about the Modi portraits. “A group of 10-12 people, accompanied by the local BJP MLA, came to meet me, saying anti-CAA graffiti had been painted on walls near the campus. They also complained about students’ participation in anti-CAA/NRC protests held in the city recently,” Geetha said.
The BJP members, sources at the institute said, also spoke about the lifestyle of students, their apparent smoking habit and short dresses, saying these were “objectionable to the local culture”. They proceeded to the parking area and allegedly scuffled with some students, who had questioned police why their vehicles were being towed away when there was no sign banning parking at the spot.
The BJP group left around 3pm, after spray-painting the Modi portraits.
In an email later, Srishti informed students that no classes would be held till Friday in the interest of their safety. “During this time... adhere to the Srishti dress code, avoid flouting laws regarding smoking in public places, avoid being out late at night and gathering in public in large groups,” the mail states.
The management also said it would hold a question-andanswer session on CAA and NRC on the campus on January 18. “The safety and wellbeing of every student is our top priority. This is the time for positive engagement between all members of the community without disruption to the years of harmony we have shared,” Geetha told TOI.
Last month, police had advised Srishti students against joining an stir against CAA near Yelahanka traffic signal.