Sign In
By signing in or creating an account, you agree with Associated Broadcasting Company's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
By signing in or creating an account, you agree with Associated Broadcasting Company's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday denied bail to former JNU students Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in connection with the Delhi riots case. The verdict triggered a political storm at Jawaharlal Nehru University. The students raised anti-government and anti-Modi slogans, condemning the denial of bail.
Around 30–40 students, affiliated with the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), Democratic Students’ Federation (DSF), and the All India Students’ Association (AISA), staged a protest outside Sabarmati Hostel between 9 pm and 10 pm.
The protest was not limited to the bail rejection alone but was also linked to events in the university’s past. January 5 marked six years since the 2020 attack on JNU students and teachers by masked assailants. The JNU Teachers’ Union (JNUTA) commemorated the day as a “brutal attack” and alleged that those responsible remain unidentified. Meanwhile, the JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) organised a symbolic “Guerrilla Dhaba” event to protest the 2020 violence.
During the demonstration, students were heard raising slogans such as “Modi Shah ki kabr khudegi.” Danish, the joint secretary of the Left-backed JNUSU, and Sunil, its secretary, were present at the site while the slogans were being raised, NDTV reported. Protesters argued that the denial of bail was an attempt to suppress the voices of student political leaders.
Students also voiced opposition to the recent installation of facial recognition technology and magnetic gates in the campus library, along with objections to notices issued by the Delhi Police to some JNUSU office-bearers in connection with the issue.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), condemned the protest, calling it an expression of “anti-Indian thought.”
Sharing a post on X, Pradeep Bhandari said, “Urban Naxals in support of anti-national Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam protested late at night in JNU outside Sabarmati Hostel. This is not a protest; it is an appropriation of anti-India thought. Intellectual terrorists can be academics, doctors, or engineers.”
When questioned if they would approach the authorities over the matter, another ABVP member told that they will file a complaint, report added. "We will pursue this matter and make sure they are punished," he said.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawallah also criticised the protest, saying such slogans are raised by what he termed the “tukde-tukde ecosystem.” He further labelled the protesters as “urban Naxals” and an “anti-India bunch.”
The JNU administration has written to the police to file an FIR regarding the incident of objectionable and provocative slogans being raised outside the Sabarmati Hostel.
The administration states that this threatened the peace, security, and discipline of the campus, and therefore, legal action has been requested.
