Hindu Sena puts up posters near JNU main gate, warns of 'stringent steps if saffron insulted'

Days after clashes between different factions of students left 16 students injured on campus, several posters with the slogan ‘bhagwa JNU’ (a saffron JNU) cropped up at the entrance of the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

The posters, found near the varsity’s main entrance and along the walls outside the campus, were put up by saffron outfit Hindu Sena. The outfit’s chief Vishnu Gupta said the posters were put up by its national vice-president Surjit Singh Yadav. The outfit also told students to be mindful of saffron culture, and threatened them of “stringent action” if it were to be insulted.

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Reports of a video being circulated in various WhatsApp groups emerged, where Gupta is purportedly heard saying that saffron culture is insulted in the varsity campus.

“Saffron is being insulted in the JNU campus on a regular basis. We want to send a warning to those who are indulging in this. You must mend your ways; we will not tolerate this. We respect your ideology and every religion. But insult to saffron will not be tolerated; we will take stringent steps if needed,” Gupta is heard as saying.

Last Sunday, clashes broke out between students of the right-wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the left-leaning Students Federation of India (SFI) at the mess in Kaveri hostel after ABVP leaders allegedly tried to stop the serving of non-vegetarian food on account of Ram Navami. ABVP leaders, however, alleged that they were violently stopped from carrying out festivities.

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The JNU administration, in its report, said that students were stopped from carrying out havan on Ram Navami. However, reports emerged that the warden of the Kaveri hostel had directed the mess to not serve non-vegetarian food on Ram Navami. Students have protested against the administration’s stand and also marched towards the police headquarters alleging that they did not act in time. An FIR was filed by Delhi Police on a complaint filed by members of the JNU Students Union (JNUSU), SFI, Democratic Students Federation (DSF) and the Left-backed All India Students’ Association (AISA) against unknown students of the ABVP.

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