'Free Kashmir' poster at Mumbai protest against JNU violence raises hackles

Amid nationwide outrage over the violence in the JNU campus in New Delhi,  protests were organised in Maharashtra to denounce the attack on students, teachers, and incidents of vandalism inside the prestigious university. Protests against the violence—that had left at least 28 people, including JNU Students' Union (JNUSU) president Aishe Ghosh, injured—were held in Mumbai, Aurangabad and Pune among other cities. Political leaders led by state Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray also condemned the attack.

Maharashtra minister Jitendra Awhad joined the protest at the Gateway of India in south Mumbai, while Thackeray said the JNU violence reminded him of the deadly 26/11 terror attacks in the financial capital.

However, a poster with the message "Free Kashmir" was carried by one of the protesters at the site, raising heckles, and prompting comments from even Pakistan Army spokesperson Asif Ghafoor. "From IOJ&K to Assam and all across India," he tweeted, with #beginningoftheend.

Former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis tore into Uddhav Thackeray. He tweeted: "Protest is for what exactly? Why slogans of “Free Kashmir”? How can we tolerate such separatist elements in Mumbai? ‘Free Kashmir’ slogans by Azadi gang 2km from CMO? Uddhav ji are you going to tolerate this Free Kashmir Anti India campaign right under your nose???"

Violence had broken out at JNU on Sunday night as masked men armed with sticks and rods attacked students and teachers and damaged property on the campus. The Left-controlled JNUSU and the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) have blamed each other for the violence that continued for nearly two hours.

Awhad sat with the protesters for a while on Monday. "When people fear intellect, there is anarchy," the NCP minister told reporters. NCP president Sharad Pawar said JNU students were subjected to a cowardly and planned attack. Hundreds of people, including students, women and senior citizens—who assembled at the Gateway of India at Sunday midnight—demanded action against the culprits and called for Union Home Minister Amit Shah's resignation.

"JNU students and professors were subjected to a cowardly but planned attack," Pawar said. "Use of violent means to suppress democratic values and thought will never succeed," the former Union minister said. Asserting that students in Maharashtra were safe, Thackeray said he will not tolerate any move to hurt them. Terming the masked attackers at JNU as "cowards", Thackeray said their identity should be revealed. The protesters at the Gateway of India refused to end their stir till their demands were met. 

Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) activist Prasad S. said, "We are going to continue the protest at the Gateway this night (Monday) too. We are not forcing people to sit with us, they are willingly joining us. "Our main demand is the arrest of around 50 people involved in the JNU attack. The Delhi Police failed to prevent this attack. Home Minister Amit Shah should step down. IPS officer Abdur Rahman, who resigned from service in December, was among the agitators and hit out at the central government over the JNU mayhem.

"This government is trying to divide people on community lines. The ABVP showed brutally inside the JNU... I condemned the attack. It was a pre-planned attack by the ABVP and they were directed by top leaders of the central government," Rahman alleged.

Nadeem Ghauri, a teacher from Mahim, said, "We will sit till our colleagues are here. People from different castes and religions are present here, most of them are students, many protesters are from out of Mumbai." Looking at the situation, the police have tightened security in and around the Gateway of India and are keeping a close tab on developments.

Another protest in Mumbai was organised at Hutatma Chowk, also in south Mumbai, on Monday afternoon. Hundreds of people, most of them college students and youngsters, were part of the demonstration. They were carrying placards and shouting slogans condemning the violence they claim was perpetrated by the ABVP and other outfits linked to the BJP. In Pune, protests were held near the collectorate in the heart of the city, outside the Garware College and at the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU).

The demonstration at the collectorate was organied by a clutch of organisations, including Yuvak Kranti Dal, Rashtra Seva Dal, Navjawan Bharat Sabha and Swaraj Abhiyan. The protesters, united under the banner of 'We the people of India', submitted a memorandum to the district administration seeking suspension of JNU Vice-Chancellor Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar. They said the attack in the campus took place in presence of police and it, therefore, meant the administration led by Kumar was "supportive of the act". The memorandum demanded that the incident be probed by a panel of retired judges and the guilty be brought to book. Calling the JNU incident horrific, the memorandum said the JNU violence was part of efforts going on over the last one month to "trample values enshrined in the Constitution".

The ABVP, which has been accused of being behind the JNU incident, on its part, held a protest in the SPPU premises and blamed Leftist groups for the attack.