Delhi: JNU Students Conducting Election Meeting Attacked

Three students’ sustained injuries after an incident of violence took place at the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus in Delhi. The incident took place on night on February 29, 2024, after the end of a general body meeting at the School of Languages.

Numerous videos circulating on social media portrayed a man holding a stick, assaulting students, while another person can be seen throwing a bicycle as scenes of chaos unfold. The security personnel of the university can be seen present as well trying to intervene. In one video a man can be seen hitting a student in the head with a small metallic object. As per reports, the Delhi Police has stated that they have received complaints from both sides regarding the incident, and have confirmed that investigations are currently going on.

According to the Times of India, the vice-chancellor Santishree Dhulipadi has stated that strict action will be taken against the culprits no matter what political affiliation they may belong to. She has also stated that once the student’s medical concerns are addressed the university will investigate and even prepare a report on the incident.

Meanwhile, the JNU Student Union’s Joint Secretary Mohammed Danish, who was chairing the meeting, has stated that he received threats due to his religious identity and also claimed that he was held hostage during the incident. The JNU Student Union has claimed that the ABVP organised the entire attack deliberately so that it could, they say, affect the electoral process.

The vice-president of the All India Students’ Association in JNU has stated that this was a “one sided attacked and not a clash.” She describes the events stating, “The election body of School Language was supposed to be elected yesterday. Four names were elected but the ABVP hijacked the entire process. When it resumed and the process concluded. We came to know that they had surrounded Danish and were not letting him leave. We tried to speak with them but they didn’t listen to us and started to launch an attack with sticks. They also hit me on my head. They do this under the protection of VC and the police.”

Meanwhile, ABVP members claim that more than 200 Left students attacked them.

Similarly, attacks that claim the ABVP as aggressors have taken place earlier as well. In 2023, a student named Nazar Mohammad Mohaideen from Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu a research scholar at the Centre for Molecular Medicine was reportedly attacked by ABVP members during a movie screening on February 19 in 2023, following which he was reportedly harassed by his supervisor at the university who refused to guide him and labelled him a “security threat.” His department also attempted to cancel his PhD, however, it was reversed after the Delhi High Court recently. In 2015, Najeeb Ahmed, a first year MSc Biotechnology student at the university, reportedly “disappeared” after he was beaten and assaulted by the ABVP students in the university.