JNU issue rocks Parliament, Opposition demands probe into police atrocities 

The action taken by Delhi Police on Monday to disperse a large group of protesting students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) rocked Parliament on Tuesday with several lawmakers condemning the ‘police atrocity’ and many others demanding suspension of business in Rajya Sabha.

Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary D Raja said that use of police force on the students was barbaric and unprecedented. “The Modi government and the JNU administration should understand that the students are not only fighting for themselves but also for the future of their community,” he said in the Rajya Sabha.

CPI parliamentary group leader, Binoy Vishwam, demanded suspension of business in the Rajya Sabha and a discussion on the issue.

Voicing similar concerns, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh slammed Delhi police saying that it was for the first time that students of the university were “beaten mercilessly” for raising demands.

“It is the same Delhi Police that was complaining that their uniform was tainted after they were assaulted by lawyers. Does beating innocent students, including a visually challenged one, not taint their uniform,” Singh said in Rajya Sabha.

BSP MP Danish Ali, while speaking in the Lok Sabha, raised the issue and condemned the ‘police brutality’. Calling the lathi charge by Delhi Police on JNU students “unfortunate”, Ali demanded that a high-level probe be ordered in the matter. However, he was cut off by Lok Sabha Speaker as the matter was not listed by him.

TMC leader Saugata Roy also raised the issue in the Lok Sabha and condemned lathi charge by the Delhi police.

Meanwhile, students geared up for an even more aggressive protest on Tuesday and demanded removal of the VC, Jagadesh Kumar besides a roll back of the fee-hike, which has been their demand for the last few days since it was announced.

Jawaharlal Nehru University teachers Association (JNUTA) has also organised a protest in the campus against the police action and supported the students. JNUTA has also demanded removal of the VC.

On Monday, thousands of students along with faculty members were stopped mid-way when they were marching towards Parliament. Many students, including some who were visually and physically challenged, were injured following a clash between students and police.

JNU Students’ Union president Aishe Ghosh, along with former JNUSU president N Sai Balaji, was detained by the police. Ghosh alleged that there was no woman police official while she was being detained.

“I was picked up by four male policemen and put in a bus. When I questioned them about the absence of women police personnel, they were rude to me,” she said while speaking to the media.

Balaji claimed that students who were taken inside buses for detention were thrashed by the police personnel. As per media reports, a former student, Sandeep Louis, was among those severely injured during the clash.