New Delhi: Jamia Millia Islamia alumni came out with a statement after Jamia students were detained on Friday during the protest against Citizenship Amendment Act.
According to Shifa Ur Rehman Khan, President of the Jamia Old Boys Association, “Around 56 students have been injured in the altercation with the police and 60 of them detained at the Badarpur police station. Messages of support are coming in from Jamia alumni from all around the world and the university faculty and employees are also also standing with us in support. The locals have also joined the students. CAA is unconstitutional and our protest shall not end till it has been scrapped.”
We, the alumni of Jamia Millia Islamia, strongly condemn the violence an brutality meted out by the Delhi police against the students of the University on December 13, 2019, in New Delhi. There is ample evidence through photographs, videos and ground reports that confirm that the police deliberately injured several students with batons, tear gas, shoes, and stones.
While many students have suffered serious head injuries and fractures, dozens of them have been picked up by the Delhi police and taken to various police stations in the city.
The students were peacefully protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 passed by the Indian government on December 12, 2019. The Act sets religion as a legal criterion for Indian citizenship. It is not only sectarian in nature but also against the democratic ethos of India.
Many of us have not only acquired excellent professional skills from the University but also learned essential life lessons of co-existing, respecting and upholding the plurality and diversity that exists in India.
It is the democratic right of students to protest. The violent actions of the police on the instructions of the central government are absolute violations of the fundamental rights of Indian citizens.
We demand:
1. Immediate release of the detained students
2. Action and inquiry against the police brutality
3. Rollback of the Citizenship Amendment Act
Jamia Millia Islamia alumni strongly condemn the use of excessive force by Delhi Police to disperse students who were exercising their right to protest against the ill intentioned CAB#JamiaMilliaIslamia #CitizenshipAmendmentAct pic.twitter.com/VIQdXweAxZ
— Newsd (@GetNewsd) December 13, 2019
According to a latest report the Jamia students detained earlier by Delhi Police were released later in the day. All the students claimed there was an unnecessary violence by the police.
What happens next in the protest will be decided by students if they take up the protest tomorrow or not with university being closed Saturday.
