Mumbai: Following protests by the right-wing students’ group Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai has decided to call off its annual Stan Swamy Memorial Lecture today August 9. Swamy, who died on July 5, 2021, was a pre-trial detainee in the controversial Elgar Parishad case. The right-wing group has called the event “glorification” of a person accused in a “terror case”. 

This year’s annual memorial lecture was hosted by the department of inter-religious studies (DIRS) and Father Prem Xalxo, associate lecturer, faculty of theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University was to deliver the lecture virtually. Xalxo was to deliver a lecture titled: 'Migration for Livelihood: Hope Amidst Miseries.'

The protest began with ABVP sending a letter to the college administration. The letter along with opposing the event, also demanded action against the administration for glorifying an accused person. 

Swamy, a Jesuit priest, was 84 years old at the time of his arrest. On October 8, 2020, the National Investigating Agency arrested him as the sixteenth accused in the case where human rights defenders and academics have been accused of being a part of the larger “urban Naxal” network. 

Swamy, a tribal rights activist who worked in Jharkhand,  was sent to judicial custody as soon as he was arrested, where he struggled to even manage his everyday activities. His age and pre-existing health conditions like Parkinsons Disease rapidly deteriorated his health further during COVID-19 pandemic. Swamy died in a city hospital while undergoing treatment for coronavirus.  

The St. Xavier College lecture was organised as a part of the World Indigenous Day celebration on August 9. Rector Father Keith DSouza, from St. Xavier’s College told Indian Express, “Our annual Stan Swamy memorial lecture has been delivered by reputed scholars who have done research in the area of history and development of indigenous peoples across the globe. The topic this year was on the theme of migration. While the lectures are on several themes related to indigenous life – which no one has objected to – we understand that the contentious issue is mainly about the nomenclature of the lecture series, named after Stan Swamy. However, from a Jesuit point of view, Fr Stan Swamy was an Indian citizen who was accused, but not as yet convicted of his alleged crimes till his demise. As per our Indian criminal jurisprudence, a person is innocent unless proven guilty.”

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