Page 22 - 31DEC2019E-4

“ inside the walls of a

central university

JMI students and Delhi Police clash on December 15 as the latter charged upon the protesters with
tear gas and heavy lathi charge after public assets were damaged, write pari saikia and shamshad ali
We are not safe even “
hat was a peaceful protest against the
controversial Citizenship Amend-
ment Act (CAA) unfolded into a war
between the students of Jamia Milia
W Islamia University (JMI) and Delhi
police on 15 December, 2019, when the latter charged
upon the protesting students with tear gas and heavy
lathi charge.
The spirit of the Jamia Milia students trembled on
15 December evening when Delhi police stormed into
the university’s central library and hostels to attack
unarmed students and staff members for exercising
their democratic rights under Article 19, which is the
freedom to hold peaceful protests. The police crack-
down left over hundred people severely injured; 50
were detained. They were eventually released after
sections of the public staged a massive protest outside
the Delhi Police Headquarters at ITO.
The Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast),
Chinmoy Biswal, said that the protest led to damage
of public property — four buses were set ablaze, two
police vehicles were torched; six policemen were
injured. “About 4,000 people were protesting and
police did what they did to disperse them when the
crowd burned buses. If it had been a peaceful mob, it
would have been dispersed peacefully,” says Biswal
defending his police force.
Tehelka reporters visited Jamia Milia Islamia Univer-
sity and Holy Family Home hospital for three consecu-
tive days to corroborate information on the protest,
police brutality, and the people involved in setting the
buses on fire. Many witnesses, both local residents and
students, have come out to speak against the ordeals
faced by the protesters since December 15 evening.
“We are in shock. Look at us (pointing towards his
plastered broken toe on his right foot), we were just
holding a peaceful protest and the price we paid is
undeserving,” says a first year B.Com student of JMI.

22