BANGALORE: The Bachelor of Visual Arts/ Fine Arts theory examinations at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath College of Fine Arts began here on Monday as scheduled and on the parishath campus itself, dispelling fears over the weekend that the war between the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath Trust and the parishath would render the campus off-limits for the students.

Exam on campus

Principal of the college Suresh Jayaram told The Hindu, "we were determined that the 600-odd students should not have to go elsewhere to write their examinations, which will go one till May 22."

Crisis

The crisis, simmering for quite sometime, boiled over soon after the lease on the 3.5-acre campus expired on April 30. The Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath and the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath Trust locked horns over the renewal, and the executive committee led by member Saroja K.M. Nanjappa, Kamalakshi and others ousted the president B.L.Shankar and the secretary D.K.Chowta.

Differences

The Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath members argued that as the mother body, the lease agreement should be renewed in their name, while the trust members were pushing for the renewal in favour of the trust.

Meeting

At the meeting on April 30, Ms. Saroja Nanjappa replaced Mr. Shankar as the parishath president, and Ms Kamalakshi became the new general secretary.

In the ensuing days, as the two groups began battling it out, the State Government appointed sL. Shantakumari, Principal Secretary Information, Tourism and Youth Services, as the administrator.

Office locked

When she went to take charge, she found the offices locked and she had to requisition the help of the Principal Secretary, Revenue, S.M. Jamdar. (The Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath has to file an application for renewal of the lease to the Revenue Department). The authorities had to order the campus to be closed to ensure the safety of the priceless art treasures, which include the Roerich collection, since the galleries are open to the public and there would be difficult in screening visitors.

Meanwhile, as the examination date drew near, Mr. Suresh Jayaram was told last week by Ms Kamalakshi that the theory examinations would have to be postponed in view of the controversy. The principal's office too was locked, and on Saturday the Registrar (Evaluation) of Bangalore University issued a statement announcing the V.H.D. Institute of Home Science as the alternative venue.

However, Ms. Shantakumari got the office and the buildings opened on Saturday afternoon. The "new" trustees reportedly backed off when they were told that they could be arrested for illegally locking up the campus and denying public access to the galleries.

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