Skip to main content

Institute independent inquiry into 'brutal' attack on Jamia, Aligarh students: PUCL

Counterview Desk
The People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has said that attack on the students of the Jamia Millia Islamia, the Aligarh Muslim University and the Delhi University is the result of fast "a vengeful Central government permitting the police forces to use  their brute power to silence, crush and intimidate ordinary citizens from protesting the new citizenship law passed in Parliament.
The PUCL statement comes amidst 172 students, staff, and faculty (click here for list)  at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Bangalore, in an open letter to the Prime Minister protesting against "repression" of students protesting the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019 asking him not to "trample the democratic rights of citizens to peacefully protest an unjust law."
They added, "Non-violent civil disobedience is at the heart of our republic's founding. We urge you to ensure that students can protest peacefully, and that violence is not incited by anyone including custodians of state in positions of great authority and responsibility."
Regretting the Supreme Court for not taking the attack on students seriously, PUCL, in its statement signed by Ravi Kiran Jain, its president, and Dr V Suresh, general secretary, said, there should be "an unbiased, independent enquiry into the police action" and "criminal prosecutions against all policemen found to have violated the laws of the land."

Text:

PUCL strongly condemns the motivated, targeted and brutal attack by Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) cops and Delhi police on students of the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and the Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) in Delhi on, Sunday, December 15, 2019 causing serious injuries to over 150 students, including girls, and also arrest of scores of students and youngsters.
By all media reports and eye witness accounts, the brutal charge of the police forces was unprovoked and unwarranted as the students were peacefully protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019 and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
The vice-chancellor and the proctor of JMI have come on record that the police forces entered into the university campus in the evening of December 15, 2019 without either seeking permission from the university authorities or having been called by the University officials.
In fact the police forces are reported to have entered into the Zakir Hussain Library inside JMI and beat up any young person found there irrespective of whether they had participated in the earlier student protest or were scholars working inside the library.
Many girl students have also reported that the police forces put off the lights in the girls hostels so that CCTV cameras inside the campus will not be able to film and document the sexual harassment. The police forces are reported to have ransacked the hostels and the library, violently beating anyone they found causing severe injuries.
December 16, 2019, media reports that students of the Delhi University who protested against the violence unleashed against fellow students of AMU and JMI were once again beaten mercilessly by the Delhi Police.
Student protests against the CAA and NRC have been reported from across the country and aggressive police action has been reported in states with BJP ruled governments.
PUCL expresses its serious concern over the misuse of the law and legal machinery by the present Central Government to suppress and silence student’s voices and stifle and crush the protests of ordinary citizens against the inequitable and communally discriminatory CAA and NRC.
The abuse of police powers and violent use of force to crush dissent seen in the last 2 days in Delhi and other places is part of the growing trend of using brutal police powers to intimidate and stifle any protest to central government policies and if voices are indeed raised, then to crush them through physical, targeted police violence, false prosecution and violent reprisals.
PUCL also strongly condemns the reported statement of Finance Minister Nirmala Seetharaman, who is reported to have stated that we have to be “wary that the student protests are not hijacked by Jihadists, Maoists or separatists”.
The attempt of the state to dub and link any citizen’s protest as being Jihadist, Maoist or separatist is done with the aim to not only tarnish the image of the democratic protests but also act as a sinister warning to others to refrain from joining the protests or else they will face arrests as jihadists or terrorists themselves and get embroiled in anti-terrorist law cases.
It is a matter of great regret and is indeed, unfortunate, that when mention was made before the Chief Justice’s Bench of the Supreme Court about the serious threat to life and liberty of students caused by unprovoked police violence against students committed inside the JMI campus, the Court chose to remark, “Let the rioting stop first … We will determine the rights, but not in this atmosphere of riots … the riots must be stopped” and posted the matter for hearing on Tuesday (December 17).
It is distressing to note that even when a grave situation of serious threat to life and liberty of students and protestors existed caused by violent reprisals of the police acting in an unprovoked, brutal manner, the apex court instead of urging the police to act within the confines of law while dealing with the protests, chose to approach the issue as through it was the students who were indulging in riots and refused to intervene immediately.
PUCL is constrained to point out that such an approach of the apex court of refraining from taking immediate action when complaint is made to the court of serious threat to life and liberty of citizens, allegedly being committed by the police and Security forces (as in the present case), seems to be part of the recent practice adopted by the apex court.
It is also in line with the Court’s approach seen while dealing with complaints of massive state wide human rights violations committed by Security Forces and police in Kashmir, following the abrogation of Article 370.
PUCL would like to point out that in a situation where the state is the primary violator of human rights, delaying judicial intervention and failing to seek accountability from the state on the ground that the citizen is equally responsible for the conflict situation, unfairly tilts the scales of justice in favour of the state and is a distortion of the Constitutional order and rule of law. In a way of speaking, it also amount to an abdication by the apex court of its role as the protector of the citizen’s fundamental rights to life, liberty and fundamental freedoms against an all powerful state.
The situation is fast spiraling out of control with a vengeful Central government clearly permitting the police forces to use their brute power to silence, crush and intimidate ordinary citizens from protesting against CAA and NRC.
It is important that citizens across the country should raise their voices demanding the government to immediately stop police action against protestors, provide immediate medical aid to all injured students and drop all criminal cases filed against students of different universities.
We also demand an unbiased, independent enquiry into the police action against the students of JMI, AMU, the Delhi University and other universities and criminal prosecutions against all policemen found to have violated the laws of the land.

Comments

TRENDING

Avoidable Narmada floods: Modi birthday fete caused long wait for release of dam waters

Counterview Desk  Top advocacy group, South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP), has accused the Sardar Sarovar dam operators for once again acting in an "unaccountable" manner, bringing "avoidable floods in downstream Gujarat."  In a detailed analysis, SANDRP has said that the water level at the Golden Bridge in Bharuch approached the highest flood level on September 17, 2023, but these "could have been significantly lower and much less disastrous" both for the upstream and downstream areas of the dam, if the authorities had taken action earlier based on available actionable information.

Biden urged to warn Modi: US can declare India as worst religious freedom offender

By Our Representative  During a Congressional Briefing held on Capitol Hill, Washington DC, Nadine Maenza, former Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), has wondered why the Biden administration should raise issues of mass anti-minority mob violence  -- particularly in Haryana and Manipur -- with Modi. Modi should be told that if such violence continues, the US will be “compelled by law” to designate India as one of the world’s worst offenders of religious freedom, she urged.

From 'Naatu-Naatu' to 'Nipah-Nipah': Dancing to the tune of western pipers?

By Dr Amitav Banerjee, MD*  Some critics have commented that the ecstatic response of most Indians to the Oscar for the racy Indian song, “Naatu-Naatu” from the film, “RRR” reeks of sheer racism, insulting visuals and a colonial hangover. It was perhaps these ingredients that impressed the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, one critic says.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah*   The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

Asset managers hold '2.8 times more equity' in fossil fuel cos than in green investments

By Deepanwita Gita Niyogi*  The world’s largest asset managers are far off track to meet the  2050 net zero commitments , a new study  released by InfluenceMap , a London-based think tank working on climate change and sustainability, says. Released on August 1, the Asset Managers and Climate Change 2023 report by FinanceMap, a work stream of InfluenceMap, finds that the world’s largest asset managers have not improved on their climate performance in the past two years.

Evading primary responsibility, ONGC decides to invest Rs 15,000 crore in sick subsidiary

By NS Venkataraman*  It is reported that Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will infuse about Rs 15,000 crore in ONGC Petro-additions Ltd (OPaL) as part of a financial restructuring exercise. ONGC currently holds 49.36 per cent stake in (OPaL), which operates a mega petrochemical plant at Dahej in Gujarat. GAIL (India) Ltd has 49.21 per cent interest and Gujarat State Petrochemical Corporation (GSPC) has the remaining 1.43 per cent.

'State-sanctioned terror': Stop drone attack on Adivasis, urge over 80 world academics

Counterview Desk  A joint statement, “Indigenous Peoples’ Un-Freedoms and Our Academic Freedom: A Call for Solidarity”, endorsed by over 80 signatories, including international academics, activists and civil society organizations, as well as diasporic Indian academics and researchers, working with Adivasi (indigenous) communities in India, has made an urgent appeal to prevent future drone bomb attacks by the Indian state on Adivasi villages.

Sales, profits of Indian firms 'deteriorate', yet no significant increase in cost pressures

By Our Representative  The Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad's (IIM-A's) latest Business Inflation Expectations Survey (BIES), a monthly exercise, has said that while cost perceptions data does not indicate significant increase of cost pressures, sales and profits of the Indian firms have deteriorated.