JNU students get support from Pakistan

Lahore: Students in Pakistan on Wednesday expressed solidarity with their counterparts in Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) who were assaulted violently by masked goons on January 5.

“We stand in solidarity with the students of India who are resisting fascism. Students on both sides have struggled in the face of repression, be it the abduction of students, on campus violence or charges of sedition on raising slogans for their democratic rights,” said a statement from the Pakistani Progressive Students Collective.

A group of students representing the students union, elders and others gathered in front of the Lahore Press Club in the Punjab province of Pakistan, carrying placards and chanted slogans over the action against students in India as well as Pakistan.

. @devikasmittal @JNUSUofficial Students in Lahore staged a protest demo in solidarity with #JNU Indian students and condemned the brutal lathi charge by Police on innocent students. #LahorePressClub pic.twitter.com/m25vXvM6lK

— Faizan Ali Warraich (@FaizanWarraichh) January 8, 2020

The placards read: ‘Resist, because violence and vandalism of mob exists beyond borders’, ‘Students united can never be defeated’, ‘Drop charges from all students’.

‘Fascism is as fascism does’ read another placard, including several others in Urdu at the protest.

“In the past two months Indian students across the country (Jamia Millia Islamia, JNU, Aligarh Muslim University and others) have fought valiantly against the fascist demagoguery of Modi sarkar,” said the Progressive Students Collective’s statement.

The students union also mentioned the name of JNU students union president Aishe Ghosh, referring to the January 5 mob attack in JNU.

Students in Lahore protesting in solidarity with JNU students. #JNU #JNUTerrorAttack #JNUViolence pic.twitter.com/LKaoGQmY0v

— Khalid Mahmood (@khalidmalik13) January 8, 2020

“Masked men ransacked the JNU campus and hostels. Aishe Ghosh, the president of JNUSU along with several of her comrades was critically injured in this attack,” said the Pakistani students union.

It said the call for solidarity from JNU students and alumni has greatly resonated with them, prompting unwavering support for our progressive counterparts in India.

“Therefore, we call on all our members, allies and sympathisers to join hands with the Collective to stand with the students of India and record our protest against the happenings of January 5 at the Lahore Press Club,” said the statement.

Revealing complete awareness of the goings on in Indian campuses, he continued to say that, “In the name of rescuing Hindu minorities in Pakistan, the fascist Indian government is actually targeting Dalits, Kashmiris and women in India itself.”

The Pakistani student leader said it is important for the citizens of India and Pakistan to join and stay together to fight the communal forces, be it RSS-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

“Unless we stand and fight united against such fascist forces in both the countries, there can be no peace in South Asia or the subcontinent,” he said in the video.

“We were partitioned in 1947 for no reason by selfish people and vested interests kept us apart. We belong to the same country, same sky and same earth,” he said as ‘Inquilab Zindabad’ chants rent the air.

Wearing woollen clothing to beat Lahore’s cold, the Pakistani students crooned the ‘Azadi’ song frequently sung on the JNU campus and other Indian universities.

Many girl students also participated in the demonstration in support of Indian students.

By IANS