Students protest against auditorium on college ground

Hundreds of students on Thursday demonstrated against the open-air auditorium coming up on the playground of the Government Arts College in the heart of Bengaluru.

Calling the project "illegal", they accused actor-turned-politician Bhavana Ramanna of trespassing on government land. Bhavana is the brain behind the project which she says was sanctioned by the previous government. The students demanded that the construction be stopped immediately.

"This playground is used not just by us but also by students from the Central College, the Government Science College and the SJ Polytechnic," said Sajeev, a PG student at the college. "If the auditorium is built here, it will become a commercial hub and we'll lose our only playground. If they are so keen, they can build the auditorium elsewhere for art and cultural activities. How fair is to deprive us of our playground in the name of art and culture?"

Bhavana and the college authorities have filed police complaints against each other, and the construction has been stalled.

S Malleswarappa, the college principal and a director of the Collegiate Education Department, said police had asked Bhavana to submit the necessary documents in support of her claim (that the project is legal) by Thursday evening. If she fails to do so, she would be booked for trespassing on government land, he added, quoting the police.