Published 21:25 IST, February 18th 2020
Jamia University student files Rs 1 cr compensation case against Delhi Police
The student stated that he was studying in the library when the Police entered the campus at 6 PM, and without any warning started lathi charging at everybody
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Mohammad Mustafa, a second-year MA student who got injured during the protest at Jamia Millia Islamia in December last year, has filed a compensation case of Rs 1 crore against the Delhi Police in the High Court. The case comes at the backdrop of a series of CCTV footage released wherein the security forces could be seen barging into the library and unleashing violence on the students. Then a video was released by the Delhi Police wherein the students could be purportedly seen trying to hide their faces with handkerchiefs.
"I would like to ask the government if a person is not safe in the library, where else is he or she is safe? I would like to ask the Delhi Police what was my crime. I have filed a compensation case worth Rs 1 crore against the Delhi Police," Mustafa told ANI on Tuesday. "That day, I was studying in the library from morning onwards. Around 6 pm, police entered the premises without any warning and started lathi charging at everybody. I was beaten too even though it was not connected to any protest," Mustafa said. He further said, "I have three demands. First is compensation. Second is an FIR and third is an independent inquiry in the matter."
Distancing itself from the case, Jamia administration stated that the video was not released by them, while the Delhi Police said that the matter would be probed further. On Monday, Special Commissioner Praveer Ranjan had said that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) will look into the matter. On Tuesday, the Crime Branch of Delhi Police probing the December 15 Jamia violence case reached the Jamia Millia Islamia University campus. DCP (crime) Rajesh Deo, ACP (interstate cell) Sandeep Lamba and other officials reached the campus and will be probing the violence that took place in the campus.
CCTV footage and videos
Jamia co-ordination committee on Saturday shared a CCTV footage of Delhi police and paramilitary forces hitting students in the library of the Jamia Millia Islamia University on 15 December 2019. The CCTV footage is reportedly from the first-floor reading hall in the university and shows police dressed in full riot gear hitting the students. While the BJP has claimed that the footage is fake, other political parties have condemned the excessive police action.
Another video shows panic-stricken students assembled in the library when few men who had tied a handkerchief around their face enters the library and help the students to barricade the entrance of the library. The video also shows one of the students carrying stones in his hand. Jamia university has distanced itself from the videos. Another video surfaced on Monday, reportedly from inside the reading hall, shows police and forces brutally hitting the students with sticks and smashing the CCTV.
What happened at Jamia University?
On December 15, the university witnessed violent clashes after students were stopped from marching to the parliament protesting the Citizenship Act. While students stated that police resorted to lathi-charge and tear gas, the police have claimed that they were forced to do so after students refused to stop their march when requested. Police claimed that students broke barricades and indulged in stone-pelting at police personnel, causing injuries to 12 policemen. Over 100 students have been injured with one student losing an eye. Police also claim that some protestors who were vandalising public property had resorted to stone-pelting and had rushed into the university, triggering police entry into the campus.
(With ANI inputs)
21:25 IST, February 18th 2020