Students injured in ABVP-Left clash at Jadavpur University

Several students were injured after members of the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and Left-leaning student groups clashed at Jadavpur University early on Thursday, university sources said.

Some of the injured students were taken to hospital for treatment. The university’s administrative building, Aurobindo Bhavan, was locked as tensions escalated and groups gathered outside it.

The confrontation arose from a general body meeting of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology Students’ Union called by Left-backed groups on Wednesday night. ABVP members challenged the legitimacy of the meeting, and the dispute continued late into the night before turning violent.

The episode reflects a long-running struggle between the ABVP and Left organisations, including the Students’ Federation of India, Democratic Students’ Organisation and Democratic Students’ Federation, over control of campus spaces and the legitimacy of student bodies in the absence of formal elections.

Fires were allegedly started at several locations on the campus during the early hours of Thursday, according to university sources.

Videos circulated in students’ social media groups showed people raising slogans and attempting to enter locked university buildings. The circumstances surrounding the fires and the identities of those involved were not immediately clear.

Both sides accused each other of bringing outsiders onto the campus and instigating the violence.

The ABVP alleged that members of Left student organisations had initiated the confrontation under the cover of the FETSU meeting. ABVP functionary Shubhabrata Adhikari claimed that several outsiders were involved in attacks on the organisation’s members and said police complaints were being filed.

Members of the ABVP also assembled outside Jadavpur Police Station in protest.

Left student groups denied the allegations and accused the ABVP of bringing outsiders onto the campus, committing vandalism and attempting to occupy university spaces.

DSO leaders alleged that flags were pulled down and fires were set during the confrontation.

The competing claims could not immediately be independently verified.

Both camps have announced separate demonstrations over the violence. The ABVP said it would hold a protest on the university campus on Thursday, while the SFI announced a rally near the 8B bus stand, state committee member Subhajit Sarkar said.

The rival protests have raised the possibility of further tension around the university following the overnight clashes.

With PTI inputs