Violence Erupts at JNU GBM; Students Injured Amid AISA-ABVP Clash
Both student groups blame each other as tensions rise ahead of union elections
- Violence erupts at JNU GBM; several students injured.
- AISA blames ABVP for attacking students, including a woman.
- ABVP claims left-wing students provoked clash after divisive remark.
- Nitish Kumar, JNUSU president, accused of allowing chaos overnight.
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 16th Oct: Several students were injured after violence broke out early Wednesday at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) during a general body meeting (GBM) at the School of Social Sciences. The clash involved AISA-affiliated students and ABVP workers, with both sides accusing the other of triggering the violence.
The All India Students’ Association (AISA) accused the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) of disrupting the GBM and assaulting students. According to AISA, ABVP workers heckled counselors presenting their reports and even snatched a phone. “When students began to question, they began beating students who were present in the GBM. They grabbed a woman student by her throat and beat several others, resulting in serious injuries,” the AISA statement said.
AISA claimed that the ABVP resorted to violence out of fear of electoral defeat, targeting JNUSU president and AISA leader Nitish Kumar, who was allegedly gheraoed for over an hour.
The ABVP rejected the claims and accused left-wing students of initiating violence. The student wing said the clash began after a counselor made a divisive remark targeting students from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and ABVP members. ABVP joint secretary Vaibhav Meena accused JNUSU president Nitish Kumar of allowing the chaos to continue overnight and called his actions “authoritarian.”
The ABVP further alleged that left-wing students tore their own clothes to portray themselves as victims and created a false narrative of the incident.
GBMs are ongoing at JNU ahead of student union elections. Currently, AISA holds three out of four central panel positions, while ABVP holds one. Tensions between the two student groups often escalate during electoral events, with both sides accusing the other of undermining democratic practices on campus.
