Chaos at JNU as students clash with police; 28 detained, 6 cops injured | What led to it?

The All India Students’ Association (AISA) alleged that JNUSU president Nitish Kumar and several students were “brutally beaten up” and detained by police.

Tensions prevailed at the campus of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) after students of Left-affiliated organisations accused the Delhi Police of ‘brutality’ while the force claimed the protesters broke barricades and injured personnel.

Videos purportedly showing JNU students being shoved inside buses while getting detained by the Delhi Police surfaced on social media. (X/@cpimlliberation)

The All India Students’ Association (AISA) alleged that JNUSU president Nitish Kumar and several students were “brutally beaten up” and detained by police at the JNU West Gate.

Videos purportedly showing JNU students being shoved inside buses while getting detained by the Delhi Police surfaced on social media.

What was the protest about?

The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Students’ Union (JNUSU) and Leftist student organisations were on Saturday marching to demand an FIR against the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) over alleged violence on campus during general body meetings.

Things turned tense at the West Gate of JNU when police and the protesting students faced off over what both sides said was an aggression initiated by the other side.

According to the police, students turned aggressive despite assurances by cops of looking into their case and manhandled personnel. Police said they detained 28 students in the commotion which left six police personnel were injured.

Meanwhile, the All India Students’ Association (AISA) alleged that JNUSU president Nitish Kumar and several students were “brutally beaten up” and detained by police at the JNU West Gate. “Nitish and other JNU students have been abducted by the Delhi Police and taken to Kapasera,” it said.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation (CPIML Liberation) took to X and said it strongly condemns the “brutal assault” on the JNUSU president and other students by Delhi Police at JNU’s West Gate.

“Students peacefully marching to Vasant Kunj Police Station to lodge an FIR against ABVP’s violence were met with police repression instead of justice,” CPIML Liberation wrote on X.

A senior police officer said that at around 6pm, approximately 70–80 students gathered at the West Gate of JNU where police barricades were placed to restrict their movement towards Nelson Mandela Marg.

"Despite repeated requests, the students forcefully pushed through and broke the barricades, manhandled police personnel, used abusive language, and came onto Nelson Mandela Marg, leading to temporary obstruction of traffic,” an earlier HT report quoted the officer.

Reacting to the JNU row, former JNUSU student and Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar wrote on X that the ABVP has been continuously attempting to cause disruptions ever since the announcement of the Student Union Election.

“It is extremely shameful that assaults have been carried out on several people, including the current president of Jnusu. In such a situation, instead of taking action against the culprits, the police-administration is engaged in protecting them,” he wrote.

“For the past ten years, despite all the attempts by RSS-ABVP-BJP, the government, and their sycophantic media to defame JNU, JNU is fighting back, and just like every time before, this time too they will fail in their intentions,” he further said in the post.