Nishikant Khajuria/ Adil Lateef
JAMMU/SRINAGAR, Apr 7: For the third consecutive day, protests by non-local students continued at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar today even as the State Government ordered a time-bound probe into the clashes that took place on the campus, regarding which two FIRs were also registered.
As the tension prevailed, Director General of J&K Police, K Rajendra today visited the campus while Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh also rushed to Srinagar and reviewed the situation during a high level meeting there.
Though the situation remained peaceful today, the agitating non-local students took out a protest march within the campus and staged a day long dharna near the Boys Hostel while the girl students also held a sit-in near Chenab Block amidst raising of slogans like ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ and in support of their demands.
They were demanding immediate shifting of the NIT from Kashmir to some safer place and action against the Policemen involved in lathicharge on them on Tuesday. Holding placards and banners with slogans in support of their demands, they kept protesting throughout the day but neither Deputy Chief Minister nor the DGP visited them for listening to their grievances.
“We had come to know that Deputy CM was visiting the campus today but he did not turn up and we are also not aware about the DGP’s visit, who might have met with the college administration only,” a student told the Excelsior on telephone on the condition of anonymity.
The protesting students also sought to clarify that their fight was against the injustice being meted out to them and the issue should not be given a political or religious colour. “We neither want a temple to be built here nor do we have any issue with the local students. We only want justice on what happened to our friends last Tuesday and don’t make it a political or religious issue,” they added and made it clear that no student would appear in the exams, which are scheduled to begin from April 11, unless their demands are conceded.
Meanwhile, the State Government today formally ordered a time-bound inquiry into the clashes that took place on the campus on last Friday and Tuesday. Additional Deputy Commissioner Srinagar has been asked to conduct inquiry into the incident and submit a report within 15 days.
This was informed to media by Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh after a high-level meeting with Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Asgar Samoon, Deputy Commissioner Srinagar, Chairman NIT, M J Zarabi and others at Circuit House, Srinagar.
Minister for Education, Naeem Akhtar, BJP MLCs Sofi Mohd Yousuf, Charanjeet Singh Khalsa and BJP State general secretary Narinder Singh were also present in the meeting.
“We will resolve this issue at the earliest and the State Government will ensure personal as well as academic security of the students at the NIT,” the Dy CM said and added that he had also spoken to the outstation students over phone.
Asked about his controversial comment that students were subjected to ‘mild lathicharge’, Dr Singh said his statement at that time was based on information he had received. “But later when we probed, all these sets came to fore. The police had exceeded their duties and they had used force which otherwise was not needed. The children (in the police action) were injured critically and many of them were hit in head and some others were also fractured,” the Deputy CM said.
Education Minister Naeem Akhtar said that appropriate action would be taken after the enquiry is over. “Appropriate action would be taken after investigation. We have instituted a magisterial inquiry into the circumstances that led to police action…the magisterial enquiry would bring out everything,” he said while talking to media persons.
However, at the same time, he claimed that the outstation students are not facing any security issue and they should not feel insecure in the Valley. “Where is the security issue? There is no security issue. That is a different issue if somebody wants to go to home. Security is not an issue and security is not the reason. It is not the reason for them and it is not the reason for anybody in Jammu and Kashmir to feel insecure,” he said. When asked about the providing security to outstation students.
On the other hand, Police has registered two separate FIRs regarding the incidents of the violence that took place on NIT Srinagar campus on last Friday and Tuesday.
The first FIR was registered against unknown persons for the clashes between outstation and local students on April 1, a day after India lost to West Indies in the semi-final of the World T20 Cup. The police has invoked sections 148 (rioting), 14 (unlawful assembly), 427 (mischief), 336 (endangering life of others) and 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC) for the clashes between local and outstation students that took place on Friday.
In the second FIR, registered on April 5, the police, besides slapping the charges of the previous FIR, has added Sections 353 (assault on public servant) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant).
While no one has been named in the two FIRs yet, the police is investigating the video evidence of the violence that took place on the days of incidents.
Meanwhile, according to the news agency reports, the HRD Ministry has said students will have an option to appear for the exams later. The exams are beginning on April 11 and will be held as scheduled.
As reported earlier, tension had started brewing inside the NIT Srinagar last week after India lost to West Indies in semi-final in the T-20 cricket tournament prompting some local students to rejoice and burst crackers. This was protested by the outstation students resulting in clashes.
The developments prompted the NIT authorities to close the campus on Saturday but reopened it on Monday. On Tuesday, the outstation students tried to march out of the campus for meeting media and highlighting their demands, but JKP cops foiled their attempt by resorting to heavy lathicharge, in which scores of students were injured, some of them seriously.
A day after brutal lathi-charge by Police, a three-member team of MHRD visited the campus on Wednesday and held talks with the agitating students, who demanded shifting of the NIT to some other location and also sought action against some ‘roguish’ officials of the college as well as the erring cops of J&K Police, responsible for brutal use of force against them.
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