New Delhi : Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday spoke to Delhi L-G Anil Baijal about the JNU violence and sought a report from Delhi Police on the incident with the opposition Congress demanding a judicial probe.
The Congress again attacked the BJP for the JNU violence and accused the government of unleashing “state-sponsored terrorism” on students.
JNU VC Mamilada Jagadesh Kumar, meanwhile, appealed for calm and said the university would aid the students in their winter semester registration process.
The opposition, however, continued to slam the BJP alleging its complicity in the matter. BSP chief Mayawati also demanded a judicial inquiry.
Congress chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala alleged that Delhi Police remained a mute spectator while students and teachers were being attacked by armed mobs on Sunday night.
“What happened last night was reminiscent of Nazi Germany of 1933. Now after 90 years that regime is back under PM Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah,” said Surjewala.
He said the more the government suppressed the voice of the youth, the more they would rise. “The voice of youth and students cannot be muzzled. The more you crush them, the more it will become powerful,” the Congress said.
Surjewala said the government should stop using police as a force to repress students across India. He cited instances of anxieties and agitations from other campuses to argue that students are unsafe under the current dispensation.
The Congress asked the government what enmity they had with students. “Why are you harbouring animosity with students? The entire country witnessed state-sponsored terrorism on the JNU campus last night from 6 to 9 pm when nearly 300 goons wearing masks and brandishing sledge hammers, iron rods and lathis created mayhem on campus. They went from hostel to hostel beating up students including JNUSU President, attacked teachers. This happened with the complicity of JNU administration,” Surjewala said, asking “Why are you torturing, subjugating and suffocating students under your despotic rule?”
The Congress added, “The manner in which the youth are being attacked reminds us of the Nazi Germany of 1933 which has come back after 90 years.”
The party asked why the government was stifling students’ voices and arresting them for voicing dissent, and for agitating against fee hike they could not afford?
Surjewala alleged that Delhi Police remained mute spectator while goons were breaking ambulances outside the JNU and beating up students inside.
“All this was happening with the tacit support of the Home Minister,” said the Congress leader alleging that the JNU violence happened “with the complicity of JNU administration.”
The JNUSU, meanwhile, issued a statement alleging indifference by the VC to their concerns over fee hike and said the VC was acting with impunity against students. (Agencies)
