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Students from the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the Left-backed students’ group clashed at Jawaharlal Nehru University late on Thursday night. Students from both sides claimed to have sustained injuries and filed complaints against each other at the Vasant Kunj police station. The college administration said an investigation had been ordered into the incident and that strict action will be taken against those found guilty, irrespective of their political affiliation. Purported videos of the violence went viral on social media.
The incident happened during a general body meeting of students at the School of Languages called to elect members for an election committee to conduct the JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) election.
JNUSU joint secretary Mohammad Danish, who was presiding over the meeting, along with JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh, claimed that members of the ABVP threatened him and held him hostage during the meeting.
In a statement released on Friday, the Left-backed All India Students’ Association (AISA) said the ABVP members had come to the School of Languages to disrupt the meeting. However, when their plans were thwarted by JNU students, students of the RSS-affiliated outfit resorted to violence.
The ABVP, in turn, accused the Left groups of foul play in electing the candidates of the election committee. It also alleged that, at the general body meeting, Ms. Ghosh tried to provide undue advantage to candidates from the Students’ Federation of India.
“The open rigging in the counting of votes and imposition of self-made rules is a manifestation of autocracy akin to the politburo system,” read the ABVP’s statement.
