AHMEDABAD, JAN 14
Students of Gujarat Vidyapith, founded by Mahatma Gandhi in 1920, who were celebrating Uttarayan by flying kites, bearing anti-CAA and anti-NRC slogans on Tuesday, January 14, were allegedly intimidated by the police and the administration, sources said.
This was not the first incident when the Gujarat Police had entered an educational institute in Ahmedabad to disrupt a protest against the citizenship law. On January 5, the police had reportedly entered the campus of the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad and disrupted the event “IIM-A stands up for democracy”.
The students, however, went ahead with their programme and flew kites carrying anti-CAA messages, who were joined by several activists. About a dozen policemen in three vehicles entered the campus at around 10 am and reached the playground adjacent to hostels where the event was planned. Being a holiday, there were very few students and faculties in the campus. Students alleged that policemen started asking for their identity cards.
“We were shocked to see policemen in front of our hostel. One of them asked for my identity card. When I protested, the cops started shouting at me and said that they have all the right to come to the campus without anyone’s permission,” said Himanshu Sharma, a first-year student of Gandhian Philosophy at the varsity.
One of the policemen, captured in the video, told the students that “We have all the rights to come inside the campus without taking anyone’s permission. We are here to maintain law and and order. What if violence breaks out here.”
According to Nachiketa Desai, senior journalist, “The police was called by former registrar and present director Rajendra Khimani to prevent students and civil society members from flying kites from the university’s playground.”
The students had informed the vice-chancellor of their plan to fly kites from the playground of the university. The vice-chancellor, Anamik Shah categorically told them that they won’t be allowed, Desai added.
“Thereafter, Rajendra Khimani told a professor of Journalism department, Punita to ask her students why they had not sought permission from the university authorities. The students told her that there was no need for any such permission as the university had been holding many such festivals such as Holi, Navratri etc,” some students said.
Desai further said, “As members of the civil society started coming to the Vidyapith, the security guard stopped them at the main gate. I too was stopped despite telling the guard that I was a former fellow of the University and that my cousin was a teacher there. He let me in after I told him the name of my cousin.”
When confronted by the students about the police presence in the campus, the police inspector said they were informed by the Vidyapith auhorities that a possible confrontation might take place between the pro and anti new citizenship law.
After some argument between students and police officer, the three police jeeps vacated the campus and were deployed outside the main gate.
Apart from students, some activists, including Nirjhari Sinha, Shamshad Pathan and Nachiketa Desai also participated in the event.
A video of the students questioning the police move has gone viral on Twitter.
