Kolkata: Amid growing concern over the situation at SRFTI, Bengal finance minister Swapan Dasgupta said on Thursday that whatever is happening at the film institute is “bad publicity for the creative economy of Bengal.”“All educational institutions have become over-politicised. This has to be reviewed,” he said. The finance minister added, “It isn’t good that such a facility will remain shut for so long. I am sure dialogue can sort out problems.”The minister’s comments come ahead of an independent fact-finding mission initiating an inquiry into the incidents of violence at the institute.The mission, comprising Jawhar Sircar, Ratna Pathak Shah and Anita Agnihotri, convened by SRFTI Alumni Association, will start its inquiry Friday, recording testimonies.The SRFTI administration has opposed the mission’s probe. The film institute’s registrar Deepak Kumar said, “The matter is already under investigation by an SIT constituted by the Bengal govt. The institute has also constituted its own fact-finding committee… a parallel fact-finding exercise by an unauthorised private entity lacks legitimacy and is unwarranted.”“The institute is making concerted efforts to restore normalcy and maintain order on campus. Accordingly, academic activities remain suspended at present,” Kumar added.The finance minister, who was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event, added: “Everyone thinks they have a monopoly over the truth. People should have an intellectual modesty to accept that mine may not be the last word.”
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