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Attempt to murder case over second Jamia firing
The police, however, said they did not find any empty bullet shells, and are examining closed circuit television (CCTV) footage in the neighbourhood to verify the claims.
The Delhi Police on Monday said they registered a case of attempt to murder against unidentified persons after shots were reportedly fired outside Jamia Millia Islamia late Sunday night, an incident that triggered panic among students and locals.
The police, however, said they did not find any empty bullet shells, and are examining closed circuit television (CCTV) footage in the neighbourhood to verify the claims. Nobody was injured in the alleged incident.
In a parallel development, the police arrested a 25-year-old man from Shajpur in Uttar Pradesh for selling a gun to the 17-year-old who had opened fire and injured a Jamia student outside the university on Thursday.
“In Sunday’s case, we have registered a case under sections 307 (attempt to murder), along with 34 (common intention), of the Indian Penal Code and section 27 (punishment for using arms) of the Arms Act against unknown persons on the complaint of one Yusuf Khan, who claimed to be an eyewitness to the firing,” said Kumar Gyanesh, additional deputy commissioner of police (south-east).
The case was transferred to the crime branch on Monday after CCTV footage, in which while the firing was not clearly visible but sudden chaos among those present was seen, surfaced on social media, the police said.
Khan, a resident of Abul Fazal Enclave, said he was an eyewitness to the incident. He said he was returning home in a car when the incident took place. “We were near gate 7 of Jamia Millia Islamia, where one road is blocked because of the protests. It was around 11.30pm, when two boys came on a motorcycle from the Jamia Nagar side,” Khan, an interior designer, said.
“The pillion rider stood on the vehicle and fired a shot in the air. They sped away towards Holy Family Hospital with the shooter brandishing his gun. I will be able to identify the shooter.”
Jamia’s Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) demanded the police take measures to prevent such incidents in the future.
“This is the third terror incident at protest sites in the Okhla region over the past four days. The escalation of threats and attacks is bound to lead to casualties if steps are not taken to stop such goons. The protesters are defenceless in the face of such firings, and they have been attempting to steer clear of violence in all form,” the JCC said in a statement.
According to the police, many, including students, were present outside the university when the alleged firing took place. They soon assembled outside the police station and raised slogans.
By midnight, more than 500 people gathered and demanded immediate police action, saying there had been an attempt to kill them. Many students took to social media to post information about the alleged firing and videos of their gathering.
Senior police officers said the Jamia Nagar station house officer (SHO) was sent to the spot to verify it, and speak to the agitators.
“The SHO, along with his team members, searched the area but found no empty bullet shells. As many people had assembled at the police station and alleged that the attackers tried to kill them, we registered an FIR on Khan’s complaint,” an officer said.
In a video shared on social media, the SHO was seen assuring the angry crowd that the police have made elaborate security arrangements and said that he would stay with them through the night to ensure their safety.
Officials said the eyewitnesses had different descriptions of the vehicle the suspects were riding. “Some said it was a scooter, others said the suspects were riding a motorcycle,” another police officer said.
Some students said one of the suspects was wearing a red jacket and that their two-wheeler was red as well. They also claimed to have seen the last four numbers of the vehicle’s registration plate.
Gyanesh said they have received only Khan’s complaint, who only saw one bullet being fired in the air and could not note the vehicle’s registration number.
Sunday’s alleged firing took place a day after a 23-year-old man from east Delhi’s Dallupura village fired two bullets less than 150 metres from the Shaheen Bagh protest site where hundreds of women, men and children have been demonstrating against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act for more than 50 days.
Two days before that, a 17-year-old had opened fire and injured a postgraduate student of Jamia Millia Islamia.
