SRFTI students join protest in FTII row

Students of the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute here, today joined protests against appointment of TV actor and BJP member Gajendra Chauhan as chairman of FTII's governing council.
A group of students from SRFTI brought out a protest march from their campus along the E M Bypass to Jadavpur University against the appointment.
"Ours was a protest march to express solidarity with our friends at FTII. Both SRFTI and FTII are sister organisations and although the decision doesn't affect us directly, yet we are opposed to the way these appointments are made in a political manner," Ateesh Chatterjee, president of the students body at SRFTI, told PTI.

Both SRFTI and FTII are autonomous institutions under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
"Our governing bodies are separate, but what is happening now in FTII now may also happen here in SRFTI. So we stand in solidarity with them," he said.
Yesterday, the students had unanimously decided against attending any classes as a mark of protest.
"But today regular classes were held. We are not boycotting any academic activity," Prasanth R, general secretary of the students' body, said.