Tensions gripped Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on Thursday evening after a Durga Puja idol immersion procession was allegedly attacked, sparking a fresh round of campus confrontations between rival student groups.
The incident occurred around 7 PM near the Sabarmati T-Point, where Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) members were leading the immersion procession. According to ABVP, left-wing student organisations including AISA, SFI, and DSF disrupted the procession, hurling wooden blocks and allegedly assaulting a female participant.
The clashes reportedly stemmed from an earlier flashpoint when ABVP students from the Barak Hostel burnt a Ravan effigy bearing the faces of controversial figures Sharjeel Imam and Umar Khalid. The symbolic act angered left-aligned student groups, who staged a protest that eventually shifted towards Sabarmati T-Point, the very route of the immersion. When the procession reached the spot, verbal altercations escalated into physical confrontation.
ABVP members alleged that the violence was orchestrated at the behest of JNUSU president Nitish Kumar. They further claimed that the leftist groups deliberately relocated their protest venue to intercept the immersion procession, aiming to provoke a clash. “Stones and wooden blocks were thrown at us. Even idols were targeted,” one ABVP member alleged.
Campus authorities have stepped in to restore order, though the atmosphere remains tense. The JNU administration is reportedly monitoring the situation closely to prevent further escalation.
This is not the first time such confrontations have unfolded at the university. In the past, leftist student groups have been accused of mocking Hindu traditions, most notably through the controversial “Mahishasur Martyrdom Day” event, which had sparked outrage. Thursday’s clashes have now added another chapter to JNU’s long history of ideological battles spilling over into open conflict.
