The Left Democratic Front (LDF) government and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) Opposition have condemned the attack on students and teachers of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on Sunday in almost identical terms.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan castigated the violence unleashed by unknown persons wearing masks and wielding hockey and polo sticks as ‘Nazi-style attacks.’ He pointedly tweeted the images of injured JNU Students’ Union president Aishe Ghosh and Professor Suchitra Sen on his official account.
“The attackers intend to create an atmosphere of unrest and terror in the country. The scale of the attack reveals the extent of planning that went into it. The Sangh Parivar must end this diabolical plan to silence universities with bloodshed. Remember, those students are speaking for all,” Mr. Vijayan tweeted.
Speaking at the Chief Minister’s Student Leaders’ Conclave in Kozhikode, Mr. Vijayan said, “What happened at the JNU and the turbulent situation in the country are a matter of concern for the youth of the country.”
‘Take to the street’
At the same function, Higher Education Minister K.T. Jaleel exhorted campuses in the State to protest against the incident and urged students to take to the street. “Such an attack on campuses had not taken place even during the height of the freedom struggle. The police had not entered campuses even then,” he said.
Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala said the onslaught was yet another galling example of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-sponsored fascism in action.
Some reports suggested that the attack was in retaliation to the protests Union Home Minister Amit Shah faced in a neighbourhood in New Delhi.
The country should rise as one in defiance against the attempts of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to choke democratic protests.
CPI(M) State secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan condemned the ‘saffron terror’ that threatened democracy and the rule of law in the country.
The anti-Centre protests by students following the attack resonated across campuses in Kerala. Activists of the Students Federation of India (SFI) protested against the Modi government in front of the Accountant General’s office here.
A different voice
Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs V. Muraleedharan struck a different tone.
He held a motley crew of Marxist, Congress, and radicalised student activists responsible for the violence. The midnight attack was part of a larger political conspiracy to portray that university students were en masse in revolt against the Union government.
