Karti Chidambaram compares JNU violence to 1938 Nazi pogrom of Jews

Congress MP Karti Chidambaram, the son of senior party leader P. Chidambaram, on Monday described the mob violence in JNU as a "tipping point". In a statement uploaded on his Twitter handle, Chidambaram called the violence in JNU the Kristallnacht of India.

The Kristallnacht (crystal night or night of broken glass) was one of the largest pogroms organised by the Nazis in Germany. The event was called the night of broken glass due to the glass fragments left on the streets due to the ransacking of Jewish homes and establishments. It happened on the night of November 9-10, 1938. The event was purportedly triggered by the assassination of a German diplomat in Paris by a Polish Jew.

Police units across Germany were ordered to not interfere with Nazi activists. More than 1,000 Jewish synagogues were burnt or damaged during the Kristallnacht and over 7,500 Jewish businesses targeted. Around 100 Jews were believed to have been killed and around 30,000 Jewish males, from the age of 16 and above, were arrested. Thousands were sent to concentration camps.

In his statement, Karti alleged the "reign of terror unleashed by state-sponsored goon squads on an educational institution is not an isolated occurrence". He compared the activities of the ABVP to the Nazi party's storm troopers and SS, the 'Saviour' in Russia and the Contras in Nicaragua.

Karti alleged "organised violence by masked intruders on unarmed students while police forces watch on is done at the behest of the BJP", adding, "Vigilante squads and rogue organs of the state have a clear mandate from the government—this happens in all totalitarian regimes and is a classic play-book tactic employed by a fascist state."

Karti termed the violence at JNU as a wake-up call to "all who still support the current establishment". Karti declared "This is a historic movement and abdicating our moral compass today is failing our tryst with destiny. The idea of India cannot be subdued by the force of a fascist state.”

Interestingly, Karti is not the only opposition politician comparing the violence at JNU to the Nazi era. Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala declared, "Violence in JNU reminds us of Nazi rule 90 years ago."

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said "Nazi-style attacks" on students and teachers inside the campus were an attempt to create unrest and violence in the country.