Ramjas College violence: Delhi Police admits 'unprofessional' actions by cops
After two days of violence at Delhi University's Ramjas College, the action shifted to the Delhi Police headquarters near ITO on Thursday.
Activists belonging the the All India Students' Association (AISA) as well as several independent students and teachers protested outside the police headquarters demanding that separate FIRs be registered against the ABVP activists who were behind the violence that took place on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Alleging that the police acted in a biased manner, they also demanded strict action against the police personnel who had thrashed protestors on Wednesday evening.
In what appears to be a major victory for the activists, the police have admitted that a few cops were guilty of “unprofessional actions”.
"In North Campus, unprofessional actions on the part of some policemen have been noticed. The inquiry is on and strict action will be taken,” Delhi Police Joint Commissioner Deependra Pathak told the media.
Significantly, the case regarding the violence at North Campus has been transferred to the Crime Branch. Till now it was being handled by the Maurice Nagar Police Station, which falls under the North district.
Some say this can be seen as a censure to DCP (North) Jatin Narwal, under whose jurisdiction North Campus falls. The Left activists have accused Narwal of bias, especially as he was the Additional DCP (New Delhi) when the then JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar and several other activists were attacked outside the Patiala House court in his area.
Even on that occasion, the police was accused of doing nothing to stop the goons led by BJP MLA OP Sharma. Narwal got embroiled in another controversy following the suicide of ex-serviceman Ram Kishan Grewal in November last year.
It was alleged that the police detained and misbehaved with Grewal's family. The National Commission for Scheduled Castes took cognisance of the case, since Grewal was a Dalit and Narwal had to appear before it. However, he was subsequently promoted and transferred as DCP (North) a month later.
Political fallout
With its students' wing ABVP being accused of hooliganism, the Bharatiya Janata Party is now facing flak from its rivals.
The Aam Aadmi Party held a press conference addressed by senior leader Kumar Vishvas on Thursday, in which it accused the ABVP of fomenting trouble in universities.
He called the ABVP's claim of attacking anti-nationals “bogus” and said that it was the BJP that was anti-national in the first place.
“On the one hand there are people who printed BJP banners using ISI money...A member of BJP's IT cell has been arrested in Madhya Pradesh for spying on defence installations at the ISI's behest,” he said, linking the BJP to Pakistan's intelligence agency.
“On the the other hand, these pseudo-nationalists go about shouting Bharat Mata ki Jai on campuses and assaulting students with the police's help,” he added.
He said that the BJP was using campus violence as a tactic to “divert attention from its imminent defeat in Uttar Pradesh”.
He also slammed the Delhi Police, which falls under the Centre, for allowing the ABVP to run riot in the North Campus.
First published: 24 February 2017, 0:31 IST
