Violence by students at JNU over demand to implement UGC rules !

Stones and slippers hurled at police; a policeman reportedly bitten !

(UGC – University Grants Commission)

New Delhi – At Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), violence broke out on the night of February 26th during a student union march demanding the implementation of new University Grants Commission regulations. Some students allegedly pelted stones at Delhi Police personnel and even threw shoes at them. Reports also stated that a policeman was bitten during the clash. Several police personnel were injured. Following the incident, the police detained multiple students.

1. The students’ march was intended to proceed up to the Ministry of Education, but police stopped it midway. According to the police, after the march was halted, some protesting students turned aggressive and attacked the personnel. When protesters attempted to move forward, a scuffle broke out between students and police at the university’s main gate. Student union president Aditi Mishra, former president Nitish Kumar, and several others were detained during the confrontation.

2. The protesters alleged that excessive force was used against them. Several students were injured in the clash, and some were reportedly taken by the police to undisclosed locations.

3. Responding to the violence, the university administration stated that the demand to implement the rules goes against the Supreme Court’s order, which had stayed the regulations. It clarified that neither the Vice-Chancellor nor the Registrar has the authority to take a decision regarding the implementation of these rules.

Editorial Perspectives

• When the Supreme Court has stayed the new UGC regulations, those demanding their implementation are effectively showing contempt of court. A case should be registered against such individuals and they should be sent to jail !
• Those who repeatedly indulge in disruptive acts in the name of protests; should they be called students or anti-social elements ? Why does the government not expel such individuals from the university ?