Dozens of masked men armed with sticks and stones stormed Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on Sunday evening and went about attacking teachers, students and vandalizing hostels, leaving many wounded. After the violence took place, BJP MP Gautam Gambhir condemned the attack and said that such kind of violence on university campus is completely against the ethos of this country.
Gautam Gambhir took to Twitter and wrote: "Such violence on university campus is completely against the ethos of this country. No matter what the ideology or bent of mind, students cannot be targeted this way. Strictest punishment has to be meted out to these goons who have dared to enter the University."
At least 28 people, including JNU Students' Union president Aishe Ghosh, were injured as chaos reigned on the campus for nearly two hours. Eyewitnesses alleged the attackers entered the premises when a meeting was being held by JNU Teachers' Association on the issue of violence on campus and assaulted students and professors. They also barged into three hostels. Video footage aired by some TV channels showed a group of men, who were brandishing hockey sticks and rods, moving around a building.
The Left-controlled JNUSU and the RSS-backed ABVP blamed each other for the incident. The violence at the university, whose students have been actively supporting the stir against the amended Citizenship Act, triggered a political furore with opposition parties accusing "those in power" of trying to scuttle the voice of students, while protests broke out at many places including near Delhi Police headquarters and at the Aligarh Muslim University against the incident.
The JNU administration said late in the night that students opposing the semester registration process "moved aggressively" in a bid to stop those supporting the process, triggering a clash, while "masked miscreants" carrying sticks and rods went on a rampage in hostel rooms.
