Detained over BBC film, Jamia students freed

Thirteen students of Jamia Millia Islamia, who were detained for allegedly creating ruckus outside the campus hours before the screening of BBC documentary ‘India: The Modi Question’ on Wednesday, were released on Thursday, police said

Thirteen students of Jamia Millia Islamia, who were detained for allegedly creating ruckus outside the campus hours before the screening of BBC documentary ‘India: The Modi Question’ on Wednesday, were released on Thursday, police said. However, the documentary was not screened.

Delhi Police personnel detain students outside the Jamia Millia Islamia University in New Delhi on Wednesday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

A senior police officer said that no First Information Report was registered in the matter.

“All the students who were kept under detention from yesterday got released just now. Our fight to strengthen the republic shall continue,” Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union president Aishe Ghosh tweeted on Thursday afternoon.

Students from Students Federation of India (SFI) had said they would screen the documentary on campus at 6pm on Wednesday; however, the Jamia administration said they could not screen the film without permission. Police and Rapid Action Force officials in large numbers were deployed at the university ahead of the proposed screening. Some classes were also suspended earlier and students asked to leave.

“It has come to the knowledge of the university administration that some students belonging to a political organisation (SFI) have circulated a poster about screening of a controversial documentary film on the university campus today. The university administration has earlier issued a memorandum/circular and once again reiterates that no meeting/gathering of students or screening of any film shall be allowed in the campus without the permission of the competent authority, failing which strict disciplinary action shall be taken against the organisers,” the statement read.

This came a day after students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) alleged they were attacked with stones while watching the documentary on their mobile phones as its screening was not allowed by the university administration.