Protests erupt across varsities against violence in JNU

From Odisha to Oxford, anger over the violence in JNU resonated in varsities across the country and even abroad as students protested against the attack on students and faculty members by an armed masked mob.

In India, protests took place at Pondicherry University, Bangalore University, University of Hyderabad, Aligarh Muslim University, University of Mumbai, Delhi University, Ambedkar University, Banaras Hindu University, Chandigarh University, National Law University in Bengaluru, Savitri Bai Phule University in Pune, TISS Mumbai, Jadavpur University, Presidency University, Kolkata and IIT Bombay.

Students staged peaceful marches to register their protest against the violence on the JNU campus with hashtag "SOSJNU" trending on social media.

"Today it is them, tomorrow it can be us. Violence in any form is condemnable. We stand by our friends in JNU," Raiza, a Pondicherry University student said.

In Mumbai, the protest by students at the Gateway of India that started at midnight continued with more people flocking at the iconic monument to express solidarity with students.

Maharashtra minister Jitendra Awhad of NCP joined the students at the protest and sat with them to discuss their demands.

"When people begin to fear intellect, there is anarchy," the minister told reporters as students shouted slogans condemning the violence.

Students of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) in Pune also staged a demonstration outside the FTII gate, holding banners with messages like - 'FTII stands with JNU, condemns the violence of ABVP Goons'.

Activists of Left parties and members of students' outfits hit the streets in Bhubaneswar on Monday to protest against the violence at JNU.

With placards and banners -- which read 'stop hooliganism in JNU' and 'save democracy' -- the demonstrators took out rallies in various parts of the city and raised slogans against the BJP-led government at the Centre for its "failure to protect the students and teachers of the university from masked miscreants".

At Panjab University Chandigarh, some students disrupted the address of Haryana Speaker Gian Chand Gupta. Carrying banners, the students belonging to some Left-leaning student bodies, shouted slogans against the BJP, RSS and the ABVP when the Haryana speaker was addressing during a seminar.

Students of the Jadavpur University, activists of the SFI and members of other Left outfits took out a rally from 8B Bus Stand to Sulekha More, protesting against the violence at JNU campus on Sunday.

A march was taken out by the BJP from Bagha Jatin More to Jadavpur Police Station over the JNU issue and also ransacking of its party office in the area on Sunday night.

The two sides came face to face at Sulekha More, leading to a brawl.

Over 100 people, including college students, activists and citizens, held a peaceful protest outside the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) campus here on Monday to condemn the violence in the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi.

Four Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) members were detained from near the protest site as a precautionary measure, said police inspector H M Vyas.

Students at Oxford university, Columbia University and University of Sussex also staged silent marches holding posters demanding safety of students on campus.

In Nepal, JNU alumni gathered at Maitighar Mandala in Kathmandu to protest against the violence on campus.

Violence broke out at Jawaharlal Nehru University on Sunday night as masked men armed with sticks and metal rods attacked students and teachers and damaged property on the campus, injuring at least 35 persons including elderly teachers.

JNU Students' Union president Aishe Ghosh suffered a head injury. All 34 students who were admitted to AIIMS trauma centre were discharged on Monday morning.

The Left-controlled JNUSU and the ABVP blamed each other for the violence that continued for nearly two hours.

(With inputs from PTI)