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CITIZENSHIP

charged harmless students at Jamia
without bothering about getting the
university authorities’ permission, it kept
waiting at JNU for the Vice-Chancellor’s
permission to take action against the
goons, believed to be Akhil Bharatiya
Vidyarthi Prishad (ABVP) members,
who attacked students with iron rods,
lathis and other such weapons on Janu-
ary 5. JNU Students Union President
(JNUSU) Aishe Ghosh alleged, “Masked
men repeatedly hammered my head
with iron rods. There are videos of this.”
She accused the university administra-
tion of colluding with the police in what
happened at Sabarmati Hostel and
elsewhere.
JNUSU general secretary Satish
Chandra Yadav claimed that all this hap-
pened “because of a nexus between the
police and the ABVP”. He further stated,
“The police held a press conference hur-
riedly and named leftist organisations,
but not once did they take the name of
ABVP. They have based their findings on
pictures that have gone viral, but what
is the authenticity of these images. And If the beating up of an issue involving the Muslims and
why have pictures with ABVP activists the government has taken the shape
not been considered?” students and their of a country-wide movement with
It is regrettable that JNU Vice-Chan- teachers by the police the Central government and the BJP
cellor M Jagadesh Kumar did not play being on the one side and the rest of
a healthy role in the sad happenings at at JNU for protesting the country on the other. This is not
the prestigious university’s campus. It against an unusual fee good for the country, but who bothers
is difficult to believe that the goons who about the nation when intentions are
entered JNU campus armed with sticks, hike had its echo on not pious?
lathis and iron rods were helped by university campuses The story takes one to Southeast
someone who wanted “to teach a lesson” Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh, which has
to left-leaning students. all over the country, a somehow turned out to be a bigger
JNU is not an ordinary university. The symbol of anti-government protests
violence at the JNU campus obviously similar dance of violence mainly because of Jamia. Had there
owing to the failure of the university and destruction at JMI been no Jamia, there would have been
administration and the alleged complic- no Shaheen Bagh. And any movement
ity of the police evoked sympathy from also evoked support involving students has rarely been
students at many universities across the from student community unsuccessful.
country who held demonstrations soon It is true that all that has been hap-
after the beating up of JNU students. The pening for over a month may ruin the
JNU attacks on students came soon after fraternity at JNU, Delhi University and career of many students, but they and
the police brutality in the case of Jamia other universities in different parts of their families may draw satisfaction
students. And both incidents had their the country, to continue their protests that their role in fathering a movement
echoes at university campuses through- against the CAA-NRC till their demands has succeeded in turning a denomina-
out the country. The result is that the are met. Not only this; what happened at tional problem into a major national
students today are on a war path, little Jamia without any planning has, in fact, drive against the government’s divisive
realising that this may endanger their given birth to a major movement aimed idea to perpetuate its rule in the
academic future. at protecting the secular character of the country.
The incidents at Jamia encour- Constitution.
aged students, with support from their Thus, what initially appeared to be LETTERS@TEHELKA.COM

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