Last night, a peaceful protest against the fee hike was being held in JNU. As that happened, a mob of over 50 outsiders wearing masks and wielding sticks and hammers entered the institution and launched an attack.
They brutally assaulted students as well as faculty members, seriously injuring many, including JNUSU President Aishe Ghosh, who was seen on camera breeding profusely. All of this was done as the police and security watched on without intervening.
The violence in JNU has been a horrific breakdown of normalcy. We’ve seen terrifying videos of masked criminals carrying rods and shovels, sauntering along the campus as if it were condoned, as if they knew the authorities wouldn’t touch them. We’ve also seen heartbreaking images and heard reports about the kind of injuries sustained by students and faculty members.
Considering they were carrying large weapons and were not students, how did these goons get past the security at the gate?
There is a police station just about 10 minutes away from JNU. Why then, did the police take so long to react to complaints made by students and teachers?
Despite being so close to a police station, the violence went on for over an hour. There are even videos showing proof of the number of times teachers had called 100.
Why was this huge mob of masked, lathi-wielding goons allowed to leave with impunity in the presence of the police?
Why did the VC not step in to control the situation? Where was the VC while there was violence inside his campus for over an hour?
Despite the violence going on inside, why were activists like Yogendra Yadav heckled and pushed around outside the campus?
Did a peaceful protest against a fee hike deserve to be the victim of such a brutal attack?
How come the Delhi Police did not use water cannons or tear gas to control the hooligans? Why didn’t they resort to a lathi-charge against those instigating violence?
Every single peaceful protest in the last few weeks has had a massive police presence along with tear gas and water cannons despite these protests being largely peaceful. When there was such a high level of ongoing violence, why wasn’t there a single riot-control device present?
Last night was a shameful lapse in the law and order process. An attack of this scale which saw the tacit compliance of the authorities must be investigated and the people involved brought to justice. The Delhi Police, the Home Ministry, and goons themselves have a lot to answer for.