Saamna slams lathi-charge, atrocities on JNU students

Saamna slams lathi-charge, atrocities on JNU students

Had such a situation occurred during the Congress regime, the BJP would have launched a similar protest rally and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) would have called for an all-India strike, the editorial said.

Staff ReporterUpdated: Friday, November 22, 2019, 07:07 AM IST
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(PTI Photo/Vijay Verma)(PTI11_21_2019_000209B) |

Mumbai: Hitting out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government and Delhi Police, the Shiv Sena, in an editorial its party mouthpiece ‘Saamna’ slammed the BJP for trying to suppress the voice of students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in an undemocratic manner.

Had such a situation occurred during the Congress regime, the BJP would have launched a similar protest rally and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) would have called for an all-India strike, the editorial said.

“The BJP has forgotten, they stood by Anna Hazare during the anti-corruption movement. They should never forget they have reached where they have only through protests,” said the editorial.

However the editorial also maintained, it did not support those students who had trespassed police barricades, but lathicharging students was not the right way to control the situation, since a number of physically challenged students participating in the protest were injured.

“Was the government able to solve problems by resorting to lathicharge? If yes, then where are the results? If no, then why did the government take such a harsh step?” the editorial questioned.

By taking up for the JNU students, the Sena has done something rather unusual -- backed the ‘left-leaning ideology’ of the students, thereby acknowledging that in a democracy, people can have differing political views.

Further, the article accused BJP of abuse of power by trying to settle scores with the students of JNU, opposed to its right-wing politics.

“In a democracy, it's not necessary that everyone will believe in the same political ideology. If the authorities beat up anyone with a contrasting view, it's complete abuse of power,” the article said.

Citing the example of the economist and Nobel Laureate Abhijit Banerjee, the editorial pointed out, "The JNU is one of the most prestigious institutes in the country as many of its former students have done India proud globally and voices raised for the betterment of infrastructure should not be suppressed. Rather, it is the government's moral responsibility to ensure educational infrastructure is improved."

“JNU has produced alumni like Abhijit Banerjee, who have made the country proud. They are raising their voice to demand their rights and it must not be suppressed. Instead of fighting the students, the government must try to solve their problems,” the article suggested.

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