AAP, BJP clash in Delhi assembly over Ramjas violence

Aam Aadmi Party legislator Alka Lamba showed DU student Gurmehar Kaur’s video to MLAs, Opposition BJP members objected to it saying it was akin to protecting those who are dividing the country while mentioning slogans raised at JNU

The debate over last month’s clashes at Ramjas College echoed in the Delhi Assembly on Tuesday with Chandni Chowk MLA Alka Lamba showing DU student Gurmehar Kaur’s placard-holding video to legislators.

New Delhi, India- March 2, 2017: The ABVP students taking out march to protest against violence at Ramjas College at Delhi University in New Delhi, India on Thursday, March 02, 2017. ( Photo by Sushil Kumar/ Hindustan Times) (Sonu Mehta/HT Photo)

Discussing the issue, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and opposition BJP legislators got into a heated debate over supporting “anti-nationals”.

Starting the discussion in the assembly, Lamba played the video of Kaur in which she holds placards against the violence in Delhi University. One placard said: “Pakistan did not kill my father, but war did.”

Kaur had launched a social media campaign against the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and had allegedly received rape threats.

Read: Ramjas clashes: Panel of senior police officers to probe DU violence

Denouncing the threats to Kaur, tourism and culture minister Kapil Mishra said, “The morale of soldiers protecting the borders goes down when the daughter of a martyr gets rape threats. The morale of soldiers is lowered when a trooper demanding implementation of the one rank one pension scheme has to commit suicide and another has to post a video on social media to get a proper meal.”

The opposition MLAs objected to playing of the video in the assembly. “You are protecting those who want to divide the country. Have you forgotten the slogans they raised in JNU?” Leader of opposition Vijender Gupta said.

The AAP legislators accused the BJP of instigating violence in universities by having ABVP activists raise anti-national slogans.

Speaker stuck

Assembly speaker Ram Niwas Goel entered the House around 10 minutes late as he was stuck in a traffic jam.

Speaking on the issue of traffic congestion in Delhi raised by BJP lawmaker Jagdish Pradhan under the special mention motion, Goel said, ““I had to call my OSD (officer on special duty) twice to get the traffic cleared. I was stuck for around one and a half hours.”

Criticising the traffic police that comes under the administrative control of the Centre, Goel said he saw no traffic personnel while commuting from Seelampur to the Delhi assembly.