NIT-C students worried over cancellation of ‘Tathva’ and ‘Ragam’

Students of the National Institute of Technology, Calicut (NIT-C) are upset over the cancellation of the annual techno-management festival titled ‘Tathva’ and the cultural festival titled ‘Ragam’, during the academic year 2023-24.

For they are the fundraisers and organisers of the two prestigious events that are attended by hundreds of campuses from across the country. The pro-shows featuring professional artistes at these festivals draw huge crowds every year with celebrities marking their presence. Tathva is usually held in October and Ragam, in memory of the institute’s former student P. Rajan, who went missing in police custody during the Emergency, in March.

The organisers claimed to have started preparations for Tathva in August. They had also raised funds to the tune of Rs 60 lakh through sponsorships and fellow students. However, they alleged that the authorities continued to delay permission to set up venues for the event on the campus. With no solution in sight, a section of them approached the Kerala High Court in December, which passed an order in their favour.

But authorities postponed both festivals after student protests rocked the NIT-C following action against Vysakh Premkumar, a final year student, in January. The action against Mr Premkumar followed his opposition to an event on campus to mark the consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Since then, Tathva organizers have been worried. They are asked to return the funds collected from sponsors as well as the money arranged by the students. The authorities reportedly refused to reimburse the amount, claiming that they had not given their consent for the organization of the event. The students were also reportedly asked why a cultural festival in memory of a “naxalite” had to be held.

NIT-C authorities could not be contacted for comment. However, sources close to them said that allegations of misappropriation of funds had been levelled by the students in previous years, which was one of the reasons for denial of permission to hold the festivals.