Families of two of the accused who have been arrested in connection with the violence that erupted at Jamia Millia Islamia on Sunday said that the accused were at home and that they were clueless about why they have been picked up.
Three of the accused have been identified as Jumman, Anal and Anwar, all residents of New Friends Colony’s Taimoor Nagar.
The police refrained from sharing the names of the other accused for “investigation purposes”.
Speaking to The Hindu , Anal’s mother Raziya Begum said that they were all at home and watching TV when three policemen, including the beat officer, came to their residence and asked for him.
“He had just had dinner and was sleeping. We were watching TV. They came and asked for him. They told me that they are just taking him for some questioning and then will bring him back within 30 minutes. He didn’t return after that,” said Ms, Begum, who works as a domestic help. “I don’t know why they have taken him. They didn’t tell me anything. I have been going to the police station but to no avail.”
Anal, she said, works at a soup and snack stall. When asked where he was on Sunday, Ms. Begum said: “He was at the stall all day”.
‘Was at stall all day’
She added that Anal has been picked up by police before, but claimed to be unaware of the details.
With Ms. Begum was Jumman’s wife Fatima who was sure of her husband’s innocence. Ms. Fatima said that Jumman runs a chicken shop outside their residence and was picked up by the police around noon on Tuesday.
“I had just asked him to have breakfast and he had set up the shop when the police came and took him. They said they’ll bring him back in 10 minutes. They didn’t tell me why they were taking him,” she said, adding that an official later came by to give her his belongings.
Ms. Fatima said that Sunday is a busy day at the chicken shop and Jumman was at the shop all day. “You can ask anyone in the area if he was there and they’ll tell you,” she said, adding that he is the sole breadwinner of the family as her father and mother-in-law are ill, and her son is four years old.
The police have, however, said that the accused have been arrested after they were identified in the video footage in their possession.
