Another concert coming up at Panjab University, but Chandigarh admn approval not in
The singer, Masoom Sharma, has been mired in controversy recently; on March 25, during a concert in Gurugram, a man alleged that he was physically assaulted by the singer, who later pushed him off the stage.
Within a span of 10 days, Panjab University is ready to host one more concert, fate of which hangs in a balance as UT administration is yet to issue the no-objection certificate (NOC) for the concert.
After the cancellation of the last two star performances in recent days in PU, Haryanvi singer Masoom Sharma is set to perform in the university on Friday evening as a part of Scitron fest’s star night.
The fest is organised by the Panjab University Campus Students Council (PUCSC) joint secretary.
The singer has been mired in controversy recently. On March 25, during a concert in Gurugram, a man alleged that he was physically assaulted by the singer, who later pushed him off the stage.
On March 24, police intervened in his show at Gurugram for singing a song allegedly glorifying gun violence.
While the choice of such a singer for an ‘academic’ fest is questionable, PU authorities are taking extra precautions.
Dean students welfare (DSW) Amit Chauhan said the university is making the organisers sign an undertaking that they will be held responsible for any violent or vulgar songs or actions that the singer does.
Even the status of the concert is not clear as till Thursday evening the organisers were not able to get an NOC from the UT administration.
The organisers have called a truck laden with stage equipment but it won’t be allowed to enter PU till they receive the NOC from the authorities, said the DSW.
One of the organisers, Rajat Puri said they are preparing a proposal to host the event at the ground adjacent to University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET) in south campus. “We visited the ground with the Sector 11 station house officer (SHO) who apprised us about what needs to be done. The ground is much larger than the area in north campus and we are hopeful that the authorities will approve it.”
A proposal with traffic restrictions is being prepared including entry only to those with ID cards, and blocking the UIET gate opposite Sector 24 from 5pm onwards.
The concert is scheduled to start from 6 pm.
A senior police official privy to the matter said that while the NOC will be given by the UT deputy commissioner, the police will likely attach objections to this. The official wondered how students have played such events without permission for loud music before. They noted that even in South Campus there isn’t enough parking for a crowd of around 7,000 people. “The police will be there to assist the organisers but they have to make sure things like the stage and barricades are stable,” they added.
DSW seeks expenditure report on Agaaz, Jhankaar fests
Following accusations of financial irregularities in student fests, DSW Chauhan has sought a report from the PUCSC president and general secretary regarding these and asked them to submit it by Thursday evening. A meeting of the purchase committee will be held on Friday to go through the finances. DSW Chauhan said that action will be taken against any irregularities.
This followed after the third day of an indefinite hunger strike by PUCSC vice-president Archit Garg who protested outside DSW office on Thursday.
