Probe body blames homeopathic college authorities' indifference

RAJSHAHI, Aug 22: The committee to probe the incident of demolishing internationally renowned filmmaker Ritwik Kumar Ghatak's ancestral home in Rajshahi city found Rajshahi Homeopathic College and Hospital authorities' indifference responsible for the incident.
Additional deputy commissioner (education and ICT) Mohinul Hasan, the lone member of the committee, submitted the probe report to Rajshahi Deputy Commissioner Shameem Ahmed on Thursday noon.
This correspondent obtained a copy of the probe report.
"The college authorities admitted that after some unidentified people had broken the north-side wall of Ritwik Ghatak's ancestral home, they broke the rest three-side walls down and piled the remaining, which proves that the college authorities were indifferent to saving the memory of the filmmaker," the report reads. The report also made some recommendations including taking necessary steps to hand over the land where Ritwik Ghatak's ancestral home is located to the Ritwik Ghatak Film Society, and taking immediate steps in setting up a 'Ritwik Manchaw and Ritwik Archive' there.
Meanwhile, Ritwik Ghatak Film Society and cultural activists rejected the probe report, alleging that the probe committee gave a partial report to save the college authorities.
Mahmud Hossain Masud, general secretary of Ritwik Ghatak Film Society, said that the Rajshahi Homeopathic College and Hospital authorities in a planed way demolished Ritwik Ghatak's home to erase the filmmaker's memory.
"Hours before demolishing the home, the college's CCTV camera was turned off, which clearly suggests that the college authorities had demolished it,'" he said, adding that it was said in the report that the college principal could not identify who broke the north-side wall on August 06.
"But, Principal Anisur Rahman admitted to the media on August 14 that some former and current students of the college vandalised and broke Ritwik's home. But, we have not found anything about this in the probe report. Why was the information about the current and former students not collected and why were they not interrogated?' he questioned.
Mahmud also said that the probe committee also recommended that the homeopathic college authorities should look after the remaining of Ritwik Ghatak's home until the land was handed over to the Ritwik Ghatak Film Society.
"It is totally ridiculous. The college authorities, who in a planned way demolished Ritwik Ghatak's home, were given the responsibility to look after its remaining part. We strongly protest and condemn it," he said, adding that they would declare a tougher movement protesting the incident soon.
During the 1947 Partition of India, Ritwik had to migrate to India with his family and the authorities later declared his ancestral home 'vested property'.
In 1989, the Ershad government handed over the land to the homeopathic college, and the authorities demolished the northern part of the old building and erected a two-storey building in 2006.

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