Howrah: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday condemned JNU violence and called it a “fascist surgical strike on the student community”.
“It is very disturbing. It is a dangerous planted attack on democracy. Anyone who speaks against the government is labeled a Pakistani and an enemy of the country. We never saw such a situation in the country before this,” the West Bengal Chief Minister said.
“I know student politics very well because I started as a student leader. They are torturing the students. India is a democratic and secular country. This differentiates us from fundamentalist Pakistan. Yesterday, on the one hand, they sent the goons and on the other side, they held the Delhi Police inactive. It was a fascist surgical strike on the student community. I stand by the student community,” she added.
On Sunday evening, more than 30 students of the university, including JNUSU President Aishe Ghosh, were injured and were taken to the AIIMS Trauma Centre after a masked mob entered the JNU and attacked them and professors with sticks and rods.
The JNU administration and political leaders, cutting across political lines, condemned the attack on students and urged the police to take action against the perpetrators.
Meanwhile, the situation remained tense but peaceful outside JNU on Monday morning as the university guards maintained a strict vigil at the gate, checking I-cards of all those entering the university.