Masked mob terrorises JNU campus, 24 students and teachers injured

Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University remains tense a day after masked goons, armed with sticks and stones, attacked students and teachers, leaving at least 24 injured.

Hours after the violence, thousands of students in various cities showed solidarity with the affected students and teachers by holding protests.

Twenty four, including 19 students and five teachers, are in hospital. Three are in the ICU.

Students and faculty members of JNU allege that police personnel and private security guards on the campus remained "mute spectators" as the masked assailants unleashed terror on the campus.

The students' union tweeted that the attackers were "unknown ABVP goons" and were even beating up professors trying to protect students.

JNUSU vice-president Saket Moon said, "The police have been in the campus since afternoon, but they have done nothing".

Others pointed to the delay in calling in the police and their failure to make any arrest.

The police conducted a flag march late at night inside the 1,000-acre campus to ensure there are no members of the mob inside the campus.

"Delhi police, go back," angry voices from the crowd said, asking the police to leave.

The JNU Students Union (JNUSU) has demanded the resignation of Vice-Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar.

The violence at the university, whose students have been actively supporting the agitations against the amended Citizenship Act, triggered a political furore with opposition parties hitting out at the Government.

Congress General secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra met injured JNU students at AIIMS on Sunday and alleged that it was "deeply sickening" about the government that allowed violence to be inflicted on students.

She alleged that "goons" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah were rampaging through universities' campuses and spreading fear among the students.

The Congress leader accused the BJP leaders of "pretending" before the media that it was not their "goons who unleashed violence" at the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

"The fascists in control of our nation, are afraid of the voices of our brave students. Today's violence in JNU is a reflection of that fear," Rahul Gandhi tweeted.

Condemning the violence, the university administration said Sunday's incident was linked to the agitation over a fee hike.

Students opposing the hike wanted to disrupt the admissions process and there have been clashes and vandalism on Friday and Saturday.

On Sunday, students against registration process beat up those in favour of it before the police could reach, the registrar said in a statement.

For more than two months, a standoff between the students and the administration is on over the hike in hostel fees.

Students say the hike has increased their monthly expenses three-fold and the Left-affiliated students have been demanding a rollback.