The Bombay High Court on Wednesday dismissed a petition filed by Dalit student and PhD scholar Ramadas Prini Sivanadan against his suspension from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences for “repetitive misconduct” and alleged anti-national activities, Bar and Bench reported.

Sivanadan was seeking a revocation of the order issued by the institute on April 18, 2024, which suspended him from the School of Developmental Studies in its Mumbai campus for two years.

“We find that this is not a fit case to interfere,” The Indian Express quoted a division bench of Justices AS Chandurkar and MM Sathaye as saying. “There is no merit in the petition and the same is dismissed.”

A detailed copy of the judgement is yet to be uploaded.

After Sivanadan was suspended, the Progressive Students’ Forum had on April 19, 2024, claimed that the action was taken for participating in protests against the Bharatiya Janata Party government.

The students’ forum claimed that Sivanadan, who is also a student leader, had received a show cause notice from the registrar of the institute on March 7, 2024, objecting to his activism, specifically his participation in the Parliament March in Delhi in January that year and his post on social media encouraging students to watch the documentary Ram Ke Naam as an “anti-national act”.

Ram Ke Naam is a National Film Award-winning 1992 documentary by filmmaker Anand Patwardhan about the campaign by Hindutva groups to build a Ram temple at the site of the erstwhile Babri mosque in Ayodhya.

On its part, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences claimed that Sivanadan was suspended for two years due to “repetitive misconduct over a period of time”.

“Throughout his tenure, Ramadas KS exhibited a shift in focus towards activities unrelated to his academic pursuits, engaging in events, protests, and other activities influenced by personal political agendas,” the institute had said on April 20, 2024. “Despite repeated verbal and written advisories from the TISS Administration to prioritise academic commitments, Ramadas KS failed to comply.”

In May 2024, Sivanadan moved the court seeking a revocation of his suspension, Bar and Bench reported.

In his petition, he claimed that the order was imposed without properly considering his explanations.

The suspension violated his constitutional rights, including the right to freedom of speech and association, the petition said. It added that the Tata Institute of Social Sciences had fabricated a narrative to vilify him to punish him for his political activities and views.

In addition to challenging his suspension, Sivanadan also sought a directive from the court to allow him to return to campus, continue his academic work and receive his entitled stipend, Bar and Bench reported.

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