A private engineering college in Ghaziabad suspended two associate professors on Saturday after a BJP lawmaker accused them of insulting Hinduism and a Hindutva group threatened a protest.

Loni MLA Nand Kishore Gurjar and the little-known Hindu Raksha Dal have
alleged that the two teachers forced a new BTech student to leave the dais after he chanted “Jai Shri Ram” during Friday’s induction programme.

Media reports quoted Tarun Arora, media-in-charge at the ABES Engineering College, as saying: “Keeping in view the controversy, the college management has suspended Mamata Gautam and Shweta Sharma.”

Journalists quoted Gautam as saying the two teachers had not objected to the slogan, and that the student had been given marching orders for “unnecessarily arguing with teachers”.

“This controversy has no substance. I don’t have any problem with the slogan. The student was unnecessarily arguing with teachers and we asked him to maintain discipline,” Gautam was quoted as saying.

Gautam added: “I am a Brahmin from the religious town of Mathura and am celebrating Navratri. Those making false allegations and derogatory remarks against me must refrain from doing so.”

Members of the Hindu Raksha Dal told reporters that a video of the college event showed some teachers asking a student to leave the dais because he had chanted “Jai Shri Ram”.

Dal members had gathered at the college gates on Friday and recited from the Hanuman Chalisa in protest against what they described as “insult of the Hindu religion”.

Gurjar, the MLA, said: “We had asked the college administration to immediately suspend the teachers who had opposed the slogan. We want the police to book them for their action against a student.”

Dal president Bhupendra Tomar aka Pinki Chaudhary told reporters: “The college management informed us during our Friday protest that the two teachers would
be punished. We had threatened a dharna at the gates if the teachers were not suspended. We now want the police to book the teachers for denying a student’s right to religion.”

Chaudhary was two weeks ago booked by the Ghaziabad police in a case of extortion and intimidation. He has not been arrested.