Since reports emerged alleging that Akshat Awasthi was an ABVP worker who had participated in the JNU violence, the organisation has distanced itself from the same.
"During the assault on Velentina by AISA’s Dolan Samantha at the ad-block on 5th January around 3 pm, Akshat Awasthi can clearly be seen with left goons. We might not have the power of your network but we will demolish each and every lie that you put out," ABVP tweeted.
"Akshat Awasthi can clearly be seen behind the left activists from 6 sec to 9 sec in the video while AISA’s Dolan Samantha can be seen assaulting ABVP karyakartas. Police is bordering ABVP and Left. Does @rahulkanwal have the guts to show this on air?," the organisation tweeted again.
The organisation also told India Today, that Akshat Awasthi was "neither an office bearer, nor a karyakarta of ABVP".
ABVP National General Secretary Nidhi Tripathi said, "It would be wrong to brand anyone as an ABVP activist and then blame ABVP for the violence".
The allegations regarding Awasthi stemmed from an India Today investigation where he, by his own admission "did all the mobilisation" and actively took part in the attack.
Identifying himself from footage of the attack, first year French degree student Akshat Awasthi told the publication that he had beaten up "a man with a flowing beard" who "looked like a Kashmiri". He was also quoted as saying that he "broke the gate with my kicks".
Reportedly, Awasthi was seen on footage of the attack armed with a stick and with his face covered by a helmet.
While talking to the publication he had also claimed that that he called in ABVP leaders from a separate outside campus.
