New Delhi, Sept. 4: St. Stephen’s has banned a college magazine and triggered cries of being a Soul-less censor.

M.S. Frank, the institution’s administrative head, banned the magazine, Soul, yesterday, hours after it published an article questioning the manner in which the college authorities were conducting student union polls, St. Stephen’s sources said.

Sunil Matthews, spokesperson for the College Supreme Council — the highest decision-making body at St. Stephen’s — confirmed that Frank had banned the magazine.

The move triggered near-instantaneous charges of restricting freedom of expression from students and faculty. Some teachers said they were planning to approach the supreme council.

“We will take up this matter with the supreme council. Banning a college magazine is tantamount to censorship of the freedom of expression. This is shocking,” a senior member of the faculty said.

Frank was unavailable for comment, but sources close to him said the ban was “justified”.

“No institution can tolerate such articles against the administration appearing in the college magazine,” an official said.

He also suggested that the timing of the article was motivated.

Hours ahead of yesterday’s elections to the Students’ Union Society at the college, Soul published an article by Maryam Fatima, one of the contestants, criticising the administration.

Maryam alleged that the administration had flouted Supreme Court norms by allowing her only rival, Adnan Nayeem Asmi, to contest. Adnan won the election yesterday.

Recommendations of the J.M. Lyngdoh committee on student body elections, accepted by the Supreme Court, state that candidates must have over 75 per cent attendance.

Maryam, in her article, alleged that Adnan had poorer attendance than he required to contest.

Within hours of the magazine coming out, Frank called its student editor Rijul Kochhar to his office and told him that Soul would not be allowed to be published in the future, the sources said.

According to some of the sources, Kochhar left Frank’s room sobbing. When contacted, Kochhar said he did not want to comment.

Soul had last month carried an interview with Frank where he ruled out a unisex hostel, saying such a move would lead to the need for “maternity wards” on the campus. Frank clarified that he had commented in jest, but some students and teachers said they found his remark offensive.