‘I did not write the slogans’: Presidency gold medallist speaks out over ABVP-Vivekananda poster row

A gold medallist with a CGPA of 9, a promising academic record and just a few months left to complete her postgraduate degree now finds herself facing expulsion from Presidency University.

Her alleged offense is accompanying a former student who defaced an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) banner, an act she says she regrets but insists she did not personally commit.

The controversy over the expulsion of two students from Presidency University has taken another turn, with the current postgraduate student claiming she neither wrote the abusive slogans on the banner nor deserved what she describes as disproportionate punishment.

A day after the university expelled a current student and a former student from studentship and post-studentship academic activities, respectively, the postgraduate student broke her silence, saying her companion, former student Olivia Banerjee, scribbled the slogans on the ABVP banner featuring Swami Vivekananda's image.

The student, currently in her second year of postgraduate studies, said she accompanied Banerjee but did not write the offensive words.

She also claimed she submitted a written apology to the university's inquiry committee, acknowledging the incident was irrational and expressing regret over her involvement.

According to a TOI report, the gold medallist appeared before the inquiry panel on October 30 to record her statement.

She maintained that the slogans were directed against ABVP as an organisation and were not intended as an insult to Swami Vivekananda.

‘I said I did not write the abusive words on the ABVP banner. It was written by an ex-student. I was accompanying her,’ she said.

She further alleged that some senior students had assured her that an apology would prevent the University from taking severe action. The subsequent expulsion, she said, left her feeling betrayed.

‘It was communicated to me by a few seniors that if I apologise, the university will not take harsh action against me. But now, my apology means nothing. I feel deceived,’ she said.

Presidency University student questions severity of punishment

The student argued that the punishment did not match the nature of the incident, pointing out that the act neither damaged university property nor endangered anyone's life.

With only a few months remaining before she completes her postgraduate degree, she said the decision had left her in a vulnerable position.

Despite her disappointment with the university's political culture, she said the academic values she had imbibed through her humanities discipline continued to give her the strength to hold on.

She also said she would approach the vice-chancellor to seek reconsideration of the decision. However, she said she was apprehensive that the university administration might be facing external pressure.

Olivia Banerjee admits writing slogans on ABVP banner

Meanwhile, former Presidency University student Olivia Banerjee reportedly admitted before the inquiry committee that she had written the slogans on the banner.

Banerjee, who recently cleared her postgraduate examinations and received the all-rounder award in 2024 during her first year of postgraduate studies, disputed the university's characterisation of the banner as a Vivekananda poster.

She said she had told the inquiry panel that the banner belonged to ABVP and argued that the organisation was attempting to frame the incident as an insult to the iconic social reformer.

According to her, the slogans were written in a spontaneous outburst of anger and frustration over alleged acts of vandalism at educational institutions by right-wing supporters.

She also expressed dissatisfaction with the inquiry proceedings, alleging that the panel repeatedly questioned her about writing on Swami Vivekananda's poster rather than acknowledging her distinction between the organisation's banner and the image featured on it.

Banerjee further alleged that the inquiry committee appeared to advance ABVP's version of events, expressing disappointment with the university administration's approach.

The Presidency University authorities, meanwhile, declined to comment on the controversy.