White tent was coloured red with Left supporters proudly wearing their allegiance around their necks, as ABVP took pride in its saffron
Repartee, poetry, some chai and sutta thrown in with intense discussions, marked the drama outside the counting venue in Jawahar Lal Nehru University. Students cast their ballot on Friday to elect their representatives in a poll that went peaceful, only to be wrecked by violence in the wee hours of Saturday that led to counting being halted for over 12 hours.
The two warring groups—Left bloc of All India Students' Association, Students Federation of India, Democratic Students Federation and All India Students Federation, and Akhil Bharatiya Janata Party dogged their relentless pursuit in trademark style. The white tent was coloured red with Left supporters proudly wearing their allegiance around their necks, as ABVP took pride in its saffron. Daflis and songs coined on the spot were the former's weapons of choice to counter the latter's obstinate stand of recounting.
Active party members on campus, vocal allies and closeted sympathisers— the Left had reinforcement pouring in from across the campus. If some students lent their voice to Lal Salaams and Jai Bheem, musically drowned in poetic dissent, others pitched in with water, tea and juice bought from stalls set up metres away. On the opposite side, ABVP chorused Jai Shree Ram, jeering their rivals with an impending defeat.
Biding time over countless cups of tea, hostellers and day scholars recounted the chain of events to anyone who came in late. "I have been here since last night. I don't know when they will resume the counting. Till then I am here," Naiyla, a student of School of Life Sciences said. Her friends, on the other hand, debated if they should leave for their hostel and take a shower. Others like Raghav Vinesh, pursuing physics debated with his classmates the "black day" in the history of JNU. "This should not have happened. It would make the atmosphere vicious. This violence defies all that this institution stands for," he rued.
In all this melee and angry outbursts, some faces grinned with happiness— the ones selling eggs, chai, bun maska, juice and momos. They were also the ones who wished the deadlock over counting to continue for as long as possible. "Humare liye toh achchha hi hai na. Itna bikri ho raha hai," smiled Suman Rani, selling omelette sandwich and tea.
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Active party members on campus, vocal allies and closeted sympathisers— the Left had reinforcement pouring in from across the campus. If some students lent their voice to Lal Salaams and Jai Bheem, musically drowned in poetic dissent, others pitched in with water, tea and juice bought from stalls set up metres away. On the opposite side, ABVP chorused Jai Shree Ram, jeering their rivals with an impending defeat.
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