Mahatma Gandhi University in Kerala withdraws funding for conference by students’ union over cockroach-themed poster
Mahatma Gandhi University has withdrawn funding for a student conference after the union used a cockroach-themed poster deemed to have political overtones. The university maintains that the image violates rules against political content in university-funded events.
Why it matters
The incident reflects ongoing tensions regarding freedom of expression and political activism within academic institutions.
The days-long standoff between interim Vice-Chancellor D. Mavoothu and the Mahatma Gandhi University (MGU) students’ union over cockroach-themed publicity material for its national conference culminated on Saturday with the university withdrawing the financial assistance sanctioned for the event.
In an order issued on Saturday, the Vice-Chancellor directed that the advance of ₹2.81 lakh released for organising the national conference, scheduled to be held on the university campus from August 3 to 6, be refunded to the University Fund. The university had earlier accorded administrative sanction of ₹3.75 lakh for the conference, releasing 75% of the amount in advance. The balance ₹93,750 was to be released on submission of bills and vouchers.
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