Hours after several staff and students of Chennai’s Kalakshetra boycotted exams and staged a silent protest on campus demanding action on the sexual harassment allegations against the institute, students have been asked to vacate their hostels and leave campus on Thursday, March 30.
Kalakshetra released a circular dated March 30, stating that the Rukmini Devi College of Fine Arts (RDCFA) will remain closed from 30.03.2023 (5:15 pm) to 6.04.2023. “All the inmates are requested to vacate the hostel within two days with immediate effect. Exams scheduled on these days are postponed. The new dates will be announced in due course,” read the circular, signed by Pakala Ramdas, principal of RDCFA.
Bharathanatyam dancer and writer Nrithya Pillai posted videos from the Kalakshetra campus on Twitter, stating that students are upset and disappointed at Kalakshetra’s instructions to vacate. Photographs from inside Kalakshetra show students assembled on the campus, with police personnel and police vehicles in the vicinity. Nrithya also tweeted that the Tamil Nadu police are speaking to students to know what their demands are.
Kalakshetra college being closed !! Students asked to vacate hostel in two days ! Students upset and disappointed! Students going to stay on and continue protest until justice is served pic.twitter.com/3Z2kx8GkY8
— Nrithya (@nrithyapillai) March 30, 2023
Police at Kalakshetra campus / Nrithya Pillai
The protests, which began earlier on Thursday, March 30, erupted in the wake of sexual harassment allegations against four faculty members of Kalakshetra. Two survivors who TNM spoke to last week, recounted their experiences and named Hari Padman as their abuser. We also spoke to six staff members of Kalakshetra, all of whom attest that the environment in the institute is toxic.
The protests began in the morning when students walked away from the morning prayer meeting after Hari Padman came to the premises. The prayer meeting, which began at 8.30 am at Thapovan – the common prayer and meditation space under the banyan tree – was boycotted in an attempt to register their protest against the institute’s inaction despite several allegations against Hari Padman, as well as three other faculty members. The students demanded the suspension of the alleged harassers and a safe campus atmosphere to share their experiences without fear.
Exams are underway at Kalakshetra, but the protesting students boycotted them. They were seated in silent protest at the meditation hall, in an attempt to elicit action from the Foundation. Revathi Ramachandran, the Director of Kalakshetra, refused to comment when asked if she would be acting on the demands made by the students.