Arrest of Kanhaiya Kumar: No student will depose before proctorial panel, says JNUSU

Earlier in the day, the JNU Vice-Chancellor spoke out against the strike. “We also stand for free expression of ideas, but I believe there is no need for strikes as the problem can be solved amicably. We are reaching out to the entire JNU community to see how the problem can be addressed but academic functioning of the university is of prime importance and should not be hampered,” he said, adding that he “never invited police to enter the campus and pick students”.

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Meanwhile, the JNU Staff (Karamchari) Association (JNUSA) accused teachers of politicising the issue. “Some people are deliberately trying to politicise the issue and calling politicians to the campus to try and manipulate the investigation. We don’t stand for this,” said a JNUSA member.

Speaking about the deposition in front of the proctorial committee, Convenor of School Languages Shweta Raj said, “Students are being told in writing that anybody who wished to submit evidence before the committee is free to do so. But let us make it clear today; none of us are going to depose till our demands are met.” Raj is one of the eight students suspended by the university.

More support poured in for the release of the Kanhaiya Kumar with the South Asian University Faculty Association releasing a statement in his support. “We feel the highhanded involvement of the government and its police machinery in JNU as interference in the academic autonomy of a University which, in our view, would not augur well for any democratic country,” it read.

Teachers speak out on attack

Teachers who had gone to the Patiala House Court to give moral support to Kanhaiya narrated their ordeal at the administrative block. “We were rudely told to get up from our seats as they were reserved for the lawyers. We were also called anti-national. The younger teachers were beaten, and the women teachers were touched inappropriately,” said Professor Nivedita Menon.

The JNUTA in a statement said, “We condemn, in unequivocal terms, the brutal assault by persons disguised as lawyers on members of the JNU faculty and students within the Court No 2, Patiala House. The JNUTA demands that police take immediate action against those responsible for the assault… and action against those police personnel who failed to uphold their duty…”