Hyderabad / Karimnagar: On Thursday, tension at Satavahana University (SU) has escalated, with several leaders from the BJP demanding immediate action against Prof Surepalli Sujatha, Head of the Department of Sociology and Dean of Social Sciences. Leaders and students protested, chanting slogans such as “Surepalli Sujatha down, down!” Some BJP Youth Morcha (BJYM) leaders even burned an effigy of Sujatha. The protesters claimed that Prof Sujatha was missing from the university, leading Women’s Morcha leaders to search the campus for her. In response, a representative of the leaders met with the Vice Chancellor of Satavahana University to submit a request for action against her.

Additionally, Adilabad MLA Payal Shanker wrote a letter to State Governor Jishnu Dev Verma, seeking his intervention and calling for her removal from service. In his letter, he criticised Prof Sujatha for making derogatory comments about “Operation Sindoor,” which has been nationally recognised for successfully neutralising terrorist camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK). He noted that in a social media post, Sujatha ridiculed the operation and the sacrifices made by Army personnel, saying, “Does ‘Sindoor’ mean something like ‘blood-sindoor’ (tilak)? I thought it was related to devotion, pooja, and signs of auspiciousness... Wars leave dead bodies and destruction, not peace.”

The MLA expressed that these comments not only hurt the sentiments of citizens but also aimed to demoralise the morale of soldiers. He stated, “Such remarks from a responsible government employee, who is supposed to guide the education system, are highly deplorable and unacceptable.” He called for her immediate removal from her position as a professor at the university. In a related matter, BJP Goshamahal MLA Raja Singh urged Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy is to clarify whether the government would take action against the professor in question. He highlighted that the entire nation is praising Operation Sindoor and that the state government has expressed solidarity with the military action. Singh questioned, “Will you remain silent if a person you appointed speaks against the state government’s decision? If no action is taken, people will believe that the state government is also opposed to Operation Sindoor.” He further alleged that Surepalli Sujatha is being labelled an urban Naxalite and her comments are viewed as attempts to undermine military morale and national integrity. He cautioned that if action is not taken against her, the BJP would ensure there are consequences.

In response, Prof Sujatha spoke to Hans India and mentioned that she had removed the post after receiving objections.

She stated, “I have even apologised if my posts have hurt anyone’s sentiments.” She explained that her comments were intended to address the devastation caused by wars, which she felt did not align with the auspicious connotation of “Sindoor.” Despite withdrawing the post and apologising, she has faced online trolling and threats demanding her removal from service.