Jadavpur University molestation case: Vice Chancellor says demonstrators thrashed him; Trinamool Congress government feels political heat

In a day of fast and dramatic developments, authorities of the Jadavpur University and the police were clearly at the backfoot amidst the nationwide outrage regarding apathy towards protesting students. The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) is also facing the heat with allegations that men belonging to the party entered the University campus and tried to forcefully disrupt the VC's gherao.

The 36 students protesting at Jadavpur University who were arrested last night, have now been released on bail, a local Bengali channel reported. The students had first been taken to the Jadavpur police station and the girl student was released on bail. The boys were taken to Lalbazaar police station. From midnight, there were protests before the Lalbazar police station. The protesters left after the police assured to release the 35 students. They were released on bail later this morning.

Meanwhile, the political temperature is already heating up with parties coming down hard on the Mamata Banerjee government. 

Vice Chancellor Abhijit Chakraborty said that he was forced to call the police after the demonstrators became unruly. "An ICC (Internal Complex Committee) meeting was going on, probing the molestation case. A section of students became totally unruly so I had to call the police to rescue us. At around 2 am, the police rescued us but during the rescue operation, I have seen, some alleged students started to thrash me. They were hurling abuses and they tried to hit the policemen who were escorting me," Chakraborty said. Read more

However, the students have been increasing the pressure on the Jadavpur University VC to put in his papers. According to a student who spoke to ANI,  "We are getting threats. People think we are at fault. We are not at fault. We just want justice. We have decided that we want a resignation from the VC and the entire panel until and unless he comes and talks to us in person we are going to carry forward with this agitation." Read More

The president of the women's wing of the Congress Party, Shobha Oza said on Wednesday, that it is extremely crucial to investigate the Jadavpur University molestation case, and added that the issue should be taken seriously. "If any girl has faced harassment and is making allegations, it should be taken seriously. Even if the person is from any political party, the law should take its course. This act is condemnable and there is noone bigger than the law, it is extremely important to investigate the matter," said Oza. Read More

The Bharatiya Janata Party​ (BJP), buoyed by its win in the Assembly by-poll in Bengal, has also decided to step up the pressure on the TMC government. BJP leader Siddharth Nath Singh on Wednesday exhorted West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to ensure women's safety in the state. "Mamata Banerjee being the Chief Minister of West Bengal, should ensure that the women feel safe in West Bengal. Unfortunately there are many incidents which are happening in West Bengal, particularly if I say the Viswa Bharati University, a female student had to quit the University," the BJP leader said in Kolkata. Read More 

In an unprecedented incident on Wednesday at 2.00 am, police and outsiders entered the campus of the prestigious Jadavpur University (JU) in Kolkata to forcefully evacuate protesting students who had gheraoed the Vice Chancellor and other top officials. The students were angry about the inaction of authorities in an alleged incident of molestation which happened on the JU campus on August 28. 

According to reports, the protesting students have demanded the setting up of a fresh investigating committee as they do not trust the internal probe being conducted by the University. Reports say that police have been deployed inside the Jadavpur campus to keep the agitating students, who were also shouting slogans, in control. 

The students claim that at around 2.00 am early on Wednesday morning, Abhijit Chaterjee, the Vice Chancellor of Jadavpur University, called the police to disperse the protesting students. Additional Commissioner of Police Debasish Roy, along with a strong contingent of policemen, rushed to the campus to control the situation, but the impasse continued as the students could not be convinced until midnight to withdraw their agitation. According to media reports, police used strong-arm tactics and forcefully evacuated the students from the campus. 

The students allege that along with the police, some goons also entered the campus and attacked them unprovoked. The needle of suspicion is pointing towards people having links to the ruling party of the state, the Trinamool Congress. Female students also claim that very few women police were present, and the men in uniform used force to arrest them.

A total of 37 students were arrested by the police on Wednesday. A couple of the students are currently in critical medical condition. One of them has been admitted to the ICU ward of a nearby hospital, and the other student needs to undergo surgery. 

The female students have filed molestation charges against the police and have vowed to continue their protest until their demands for a fresh investigation into the molestation case is done. Students are even demanding the resignation of the Vice Chancellor for unleashing the police on them.

Some students of Jadavpur University have put up videos on Facebook of Tuesday night's events.