Supreme Court refuses to entertain PIL on FTII row

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court today declined to entertain a PIL seeking its intervention to end the ongoing stir at Film and Television Institute of India ( FTII) opposing the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as Chairman.

"We decline," a bench comprising Chief Justice H L Dattu and Justice Amitava Roy said.

The court was hearing a PIL, filed by Supreme Court lawyer Vineet Dhanda alleging that the Centre was not taking effective steps to bring back normalcy in the the FTII at Pune which has been witnessing the students' agitation for almost three months now.

"The more disturbing part besides the strike, started by students almost 82 days ago, is the dragging of students into politics by various political parties, thereby complicating the simple issue into an unsolvable problem at present.

"The present situation has worsened to an extent that there have been various incidents of violence on the premises and students were arrested," the plea alleged.

"It is the duty of the Centre and I & B ministry to end the strike so that the tension in Pune comes to end and the careers of FTII students are not affected," it said.

During the hearing, Dhanda said it was unfortunate that the students had to go on strike for the appointment of a Chairman who has very little role in the educational aspect of FTII.