While George Orwell’s 1945 dystopian allegory Animal Farm is a savage indictment of Stalinism and Nazism, it certainly has nothing to do with the theme of rape.
So, students of the city-based Sanghavi Kesari College in Chinchwad were left dumbfounded when an English professor reportedly remarked that “if rape was inevitable, then girls ought to enjoy it”, while purporting to explain a chapter from the novella.
The gratuitous remark, which the professor justified by a flimsy reference to Animal Farm, has led to a storm of protest amongst students, who also questioned the professor’s past conduct during his tenure in the college.
“There’s nothing in Animal Farm that warrants such a remark. Furthermore, he [the professor] used to passing lewd remarks at us in the past, even making unsavoury comments towards pregnant women,” said a first-year female student.
On Wednesday, the college was stormed by irate students, corporators and youth leaders of political parties, who damaged the principal’s car. Around 100 students later staged a protest against the professor, lambasting him for his callous and insensitive attitude towards women and demanding his suspension.
“We are extremely upset at his [the professor’s] behaviour. A series of holidays prevented us from voicing our disgust at his attitude towards girl students,” said one of the senior students.
While the college administration initially denied charges, the professor caved in to the pressure and tendered an apology in public. He said he had referred to certain passages from the book while teaching communication to a Commerce class.
“The teacher has apologised for his comments and said he would behave in the future. No complaint has been lodged against him,” said Principal Kailash Bavle, who said he was not present in the college when the incident occurred.
