K Shabas Haris
Tension flared at Trivandrum University college after members of the left-wing student organization SFI allegedly interrupted and attempted to assault Salwa P, a third-year BA Political Science student and UUC candidate of Fraternity movement, while she was addressing students during the “Meet the Candidate” session.
The incident occurred when Salwa began speaking on issues related to Palestine, British colonialism, Rohith Vemula, and the broader need for resistance. As her speech progressed, sections of the crowd—reportedly led by SFI cadres —began chanting “Varggeyatha Thualayatte” (Down Communalism), repeatedly interrupting her speech. One SFI comrade allegedly approached the podium in an attempt to stop her address.
“This clearly shows the double stand of SFI. SFI usually says they are with Palestine. But when we talk about Palestine by wearing a kefiyah, they call it Communalism or Terrorism,” Salwa said after the incident. “The speech I made was about the Palestinian issue, the history of resistance against British colonialism, and the institutional murder of Rohith Vemula. These are not against SFI, but still, they tried to assault me,” she added.
Salwa further alleged that this was not an isolated episode, claiming that she has repeatedly faced humiliation and alienation on campus at the hands of SFI cadres for standing firm on her political beliefs.
The Meet the Candidate session was part of the ongoing campaign ahead of the campus elections scheduled for October 10. The campaign officially began on Monday, and yesterday’s incident has sparked sharp reactions from various student groups.
Denying the allegations, an SFI representative said, “We didn’t interrupt or assault anyone. When they started to speak Communalism, we chanted ‘Varggeyatha Thualayatte (Down Communalism).’”
Labeeb Kayakkodi, Vice President of Fraternity Movement, Kerala, said:
“Salwa spoke about the genocide happening in Gaza and the institutional murder of Rohith Vemula. Only because of this, SFI goons tried to assault a girl. The whole world stands with Palestine, but an SFI campus unit in Kerala labels Palestine solidarity as Communalism. This incident reflects the continuation of SFI’s Stalinist tendency across Kerala. They have a legacy of assaulting women just for expressing their political views.”
As the election day nears, the incident has intensified debates over freedom of expression and political intolerance within campus spaces—raising uncomfortable questions about the treatment of dissenting voices in Kerala’s student posession
