Students take part in Iftar organised by VC SK Jain at BHU
Iftar celebrations inside the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) campus in Varanasi were disrupted on Wednesday evening by some students who objected to the attendance of Vice-Chancellor Sudhir K Jain, according to news agency ANI.
The Iftar was organised by Jain and was attended by Muslim students and varsity staff, it said.
Students affiliated with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) objected to the event as they alleged that there was no tradition of organising such event inside the campus.
Protesting students also took out a march and burnt an effigy of Jain to protest his move. They said that the event was organised by Jain to appease the Muslims.
"There has been no tradition of holding Iftar in the last five years. This is the first time when such an event was organised," one of the protesting students said.
The event in question was organised at the Mahila Mahavidyalay inside the university campus.
Students also alleged that the current VC stopped his predecessor's practice of distributing fruits during Navratri.
Professor Sudhir K Jain assumed the office as the 28th VC of the BHU in January this year. He is an internationally reputed scholar of earthquake engineering and academic administrator.
Muslims during the Islamic month of Ramadan observe 'Roza' (fast between dawn and nightfall). Iftar is the nightly meal that marks the breaking of the fast.
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