The JNU administration on Thursday ordered an inquiry into burning of the effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others by a section of students in the university campus on the occasion of Dussher
The JNU administration on Thursday ordered an inquiry into burning of the effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others by a section of students in the university campus on the occasion of Dusshera by projecting them as Ravana. “We have ordered an inquiry into the effigy burning incident and are examining the issue,” said JNU vice-chancellor Jagadesh Kumar, whose picture was also put up as effigy and set ablaze on Tuesday night.
The move comes nearly a week after the varsity ordered a proctorial inquiry into burning of effigy of Gujarat government and “gau-rakshak” (cow vigilantes) and issued showcause notices to the students concerned.
Meanwhile, the home ministry has also asked for a report on the issue.
While pointing towards the ABVP, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said, “If the home ministry is seeking a report on the burning of the effigy of the PM, then it should also seek a report on how many effigies of Dr Manmohan Singh were burnt by ABVP between 2004-14. Also, student politics is always characterised with an amount of aggression. By circumscribing it, the PM is sowing the seeds of a massive student movement.”
The police officials, however, maintained that no case has been registered yet. Members of Congress-affiliated National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) had chosen the visages of PM and BJP chief Amit Shah to represent the demon king and burnt their effigies on Tuesday.
They claimed that it was a protest against the Centre’s “failure” to honour its promises and the “continuous attacks” on various educational institutions across the country.
However, the NSUI, which even released an official statement on Thursday, clarified that it does not encourage the practice of effigy burning as the organisational code of conduct in its desirable norms of behaviour dejects effigy burning as a form of protest. But as the purpose of this demonstration by NSUI was to protest against the imposition of RSS ideology upon students within educational institutions, they found the act completely democratic and an acceptable form of marking protest. The university officials maintained that no permission was sought for the event.
