What justice can JNU expect?

The questions raised about the dastardly attack on the students and teachers of Jawaharlal University (JNU) on Sunday have not been answered by the university authorities, the Delhi Police and the Union Home Ministry, which controls the police. Masked thugs went on a rampage on the campus, and the condemnations and protests against it are continuing everywhere in the country. But the responses of the authorities are unsatisfactory, even callous.

They have indirectly and sometimes directly sought to make the victims the offenders and the culprits the aggrieved. Vice Chancellor Jagadesh Kumar was missing for the entire duration of the attack, and when he made a public statement the next day, he had no sympathy for the students or the teachers. He has proved that he is not fit to hold the position and should resign or be sacked. Other university authorities were lax in securing police help to save the students from the attackers. It was hours after the mayhem started that an official request was made to the police for deployment of more forces to tackle the situation.

The biggest failure was on the part of Delhi Police, and it could be considered deliberate. The police did not intervene to protect the students when the attack was going on and allowed the goons to escape later. FIRs have been filed against JNU union president Aishe Ghosh, whose blood-soaked and bandaged face has become the visage of the attack, and other victims. A vague FIR has been filed against unknown persons, but no culprit has been identified and arrested yet, though one organisation has claimed responsibility for the attack. The inquiry conducted by the police could only be a farce considering that it was itself culpable for facilitating the attack and protecting the culprits.

The Home Ministry and the BJP have already made up their minds and come to conclusions about who is, or not, the culprit. Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai has already declared that “this is the work of Communists, Congress and Kejriwal.’’ Only days before the attack, Home Minister Amit Shah had told a party workers’ meeting in Delhi that JNU was a home of the “tukde tukde” gang who should be taught a lesson. When the government and the ruling party have clearly targeted JNU in the past and continue to make no secret of their hostility to the institution, what justice can the students expect? The much-tweeting Prime Minister has not found a word to support and empathise with the students. Three days after the attack, the government, the police and the university authorities all stand indicted in various ways for the reprehensible events that happened on the JNU campus.