Fight Erupts Between ABVP, JNU Students' Union Over 'Vandalism' Of Shivaji Maharaj's Portrait
A fight broke out between ABVP and JNU Students' Union after the former alleged a portrait of Shivaji Maharaj was 'vandalised' by the members of SFI.
New Delhi: A scuffle broke out in Jawaharlal Nehru University Campus (JNU) between student leaders of ABVP and left-ruled JNU Students Union (JNUSU) over alleged 'vandalism' of a portrait of Shivaji Maharaj on Sunday. Members of ABVP said that they put a portrait of Shivaji Maharaj at the student activity centre on the occasion of his Jayanti. But, they allege, members of the Students' Federation of India (SFI) 'vandalised' the portrait and there it outside the room.
"On the occasion of Shivaji Jayanti, we kept a portrait at student activity centre, but students from SFI threw it outside the room while garland was thrown in the dustbin," JNU ABVP Secretary Umesh Chandra Ajmera told ANI.
He said, "Today is the birth anniversary of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. We had put up a portrait of Shivaji Maharaj on the walls outside the student activity centre as tribute. But the 'communists' of JNU couldn't digest this. People from '100 Flowers Group' and SFI came and vandalised the portrait of Shivaji Maharaj."
Ajmera went on to say that those involved in the incident were "illegal workers" (outsiders) and had entered the college premises without permission, reported ANI.
"When we asked to stop, they said, "We will do this, we don't believe in them, we only believe in Marxist and Leninist ideology"," said Ajmera adding that neither they were able to show their ID cards, nor were they going out.
He urged the JNU administration to take strict action against these people.
"We request the JNU administration to take strict action against the accused. We also urge the administration to stop illegal students from entering the campus and creating a nuisance. These people should be stopped from bringing a bad name to the university," Ajmera added, as quoted by ANI.
Reacting to the allegations, NSUI members said that formal permission is required from the students' union delegation to keep a portrait of Shivaji Maharaj at the JNUSU office. They said that ABVP members put the portrait in an 'illegal' manner.
ABVP members kept Shivaji's portrait at JNUSU office for which permission from JNUSU delegation was needed. Despite that, they did it illegally. Other students came there & removed all portraits for screening programme due to which fight broke out b/w two groups:JNU NSUI Gen Secy pic.twitter.com/TXdJYSlTMH
— ANI (@ANI) February 19, 2023
JNU NSUI Gen Secretary told ANI, "ABVP members kept Shivaji's portrait at JNUSU office for which permission from JNUSU delegation was needed. Despite that, they did it illegally. Other students came there & removed all portraits for screening programme due to which fight broke out between two groups."
ABVP JNU Social media convenor Kumar Ashutosh told ANI, "ABVP members kept Shivaji's portrait at the JNUSU office. The leftists came there & removed all portraits and threw the garland in the dustbin and then a fight broke out. 5-6 ABVP members were also injured during this."
He demanded strict action against the members of the left-affiliated and asked to rename the JNUSU office after Shivaji Maharaj.
"We demand the JNU administration and Delhi Police take strict action against them and also demand to name the JNUSU office be named after Shivaji Maharaj," he added.