Students must end strike, talk to Government
The situation at the Film and Television Institute of India, involving chairman-designate Gajendra Chauhan, has reached a stalemate: Students have been on strike for more than 40 days demanding his removal, while the Government has made clear that it will not be bullied into changing its decision. From this point, the narrative can go in two directions — it can either escalate, leading to a hardening of positions on both sides, or it can ease, with both parties talking through the issues with an open mind. Unfortunately, it seems like the situation is heading towards the former. The students are planning to bring their protest to Delhi on August 3 and are hoping to rope in supporters from the National School of Drama, the National Institute of Fashion Technology and the Indian Institute of Technology. They are also hoping that the student councils of institutes like the Indian Council for Cultural Relations and the Indian Council of Historical Research will join them. The whole thing will be a big media tamasha, and that's about it. On the other hand, the Government is also digging in its heels. The new director at FTII, Mr Prashant Pathrabe, has said that the management is considering rusticating students and temporarily shutting down the institute. None of these will lead to a solution. The only way out is dialogue and mediation — and that cannot happen as long as either party holds maximalist positions. The Government has said that it is willing to talk to the students and consider their grievances. Unfortunately, the students have refused to meet the Government half-way, insisting that unless Mr Chauhan is removed, they will not be calling off the strike. This is not a protest, but blackmail. The students cannot hold a gun to the Government's head and expect to have their way. They should go back to class and negotiate with the Government for a better deal.
The students need to acknowledge that, while they may not approve of Mr Chauhan's professional credentials or consider him worthy of the FTII chairperson's office, the appointee has come through a proper selection process and there are no allegations of any procedural flaw in his appointment. Also, they must understand that, while the FTII may be ‘their' institute and they have a stake in its functioning, it is a tax-payer-funded institution and disruptions of this sort are an unacceptable waste of public money. This is not to say that they have no legitimate grievances — there are several deep-rooted problems in the way the FTII functions, and it has resulted in a long history of student protests. The students squatting in FTII hostels, long after they passed out, is just one example of the many administrative problems at the institute. There have been attempts to re-structure the FTII, based on recommendations from the Government and the private sector. However, any proposed change, be it to the curriculum or administration, has met with stiff resistance from one section or the other, resulting in a status quo. This needs to change. Instead of focussing on Mr Chauhan, both students and the Government should look at the larger issues plaguing the institute. Moving away from rigid positions and working with each other to script a better plan for the future of FTII, will give both parties room to manoeuvre.