In a possible breakthrough in the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) row, students of the institute have written to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry and have agreed to a dialogue.
The FTII students replied after the I&B ministry wrote to the students seeking an amicable solution to the issue.
This comes days after a three-member team constituted by the ministry to review the standoff at FTII had submitted its report to the government.
The team, headed by Registrar of newspapers SM Khan had held talks with students, faculty and other stakeholders at the premier film institute.
“We had very good discussions with all the stakeholders staff, faculty, students and the alumni and we could understand the issues involved. All are satisfied with the discussions and we will submit our report to the I&B ministry very soon,” Khan had said after the talks but remained non-committal on whether Chauhan would be removed, saying the details cannot be disclosed.
A representative of the FTII Students’ Association (FSA) also described the talks as “very fruitful and much awaited discussion”.
The students have been on strike, boycotting classes and other academic activity since June 12 to demand removal of Chauhan, claiming he lacked “credentials, vision and academic excellence” to head the premier institution.
The campus unrest reached a flashpoint when police swooped down on the campus and arrested five students for vandalising the premises and confining FTII director Prashant Pathrabe to his chamber.
The arrests had triggered outrage and several top politicians including Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal condemned it, prompting the Centre to despatch the team headed by Khan to Pune.
