New Delhi: Jamia Millia Islamia became the site of escalating tensions during a Diwali celebration that resulted in a scuffle between student groups here Tuesday. The event, titled Jyotirgamya 24, was organized by Yuva Jamia, the cultural wing of ABVP, the student wing of BJP. Held at Gate No. 7 of the main campus, the celebration included live music, rangoli-making, sweet distribution, and diya lighting, and saw participation from students across departments and religions.
The event, which began around 4:30 PM, took a sharp turn around 7:00 PM when prominent BJP-ABVP leaders, including Bhanu Pratap Singh (Vice President ABVP, DUSU), Naina Dhiman (ABVP member), Bablu Tiwari (NEC, ABVP), and Ashwin Tiwari, arrived on campus with several outsiders. Firecrackers were set off, and slogans such as “Jai Shri Ram” were raised, which provoked Muslim students.
In response, students began raising slogans like “Palestine Zindabad” and “Allahu Akbar,” leading to increased tensions. Reports indicate that ABVP members, along with outsiders, allegedly began harassing Muslim female students, further intensifying the situation and sparking confrontations that resulted in clashes.
The police intervened with lathi charges to disperse the crowd, although some students claimed that the lathi charge unfairly targeted those protesting against the harassment.
The JMI units of SFI, Fraternity Movement, and NSUI condemned the ABVP actions, accusing the Hindutva student wing of disrupting the peace on campus. Both Fraternity Movement and SFI criticized the university administration for allowing the event, which, they claimed, directly led to the conflict.
Students further alleged that many of the event’s participants were not Jamia students and refused to leave the premises even after the allotted time for the celebration had passed.
In a statement, SFI said, “These people, under the guise of festivities, brought local goons who shouted communal slogans like ‘Jai Shri Ram’ in the face of Muslim women students while misbehaving with them.”
Later, on Wednesday, ABVP circulated a notice, calling for another Diwali celebration in response to the previous day’s clashes. However, police acted promptly to prevent the event from taking place. Despite this, later in the evening, in a show of defiance, ABVP members held another Diwali celebration at JMI Centenary Gate, claiming a symbolic victory.
The incident has continued to raise questions about the involvement of outsiders in university events and the university’s handling of such situations. Investigations are ongoing into the role of the political figures and the external participants in the unrest.
