The Delhi Police on Thursday claimed that a video clip obtained by them in connection with the Ramjas College clashes appeared to be doctored.
Submitting an action-taken report in a court here, the police said, “The video clip, obtained from an unknown social network, apparently looks doctored.”
Forensic examination
The footage would now be sent for forensic examination, said Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Praveer Ranjan.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Madhur Verma said the clip was an amalgamation of the Ramjas protests, speeches made by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid, sloganeering at JNU, and other incidents. Mr. Ranjan said they had requested sources in the media to provide a raw footage of the Ramjas College clashes. The police have also asked college principal Rajendra Prasad to provide CCTV footage of the violence.
The court was hearing a plea submitted by advocate Vivek Garg seeking lodging of an FIR against those who had allegedly raised anti-national slogans at Ramjas College last year.
Sedition charges
On February 21, 2016, a fight broke out between the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the Left-affiliated All India Students’ Association (AISA) over an invitation to Mr. Khalid for a seminar organised by Ramjas College. Mr. Khalid and others were accused of sedition after they allegedly raised anti-national slogans on the JNU campus last year. The ABVP had also protested an invitation to Shehla Rashid, JNU student and vice-president of the students’ union from 2015-16, who had mobilised students to oppose the sedition charges.
Mr. Khalid’s session was subsequently cancelled by the college authorities. This led to a protest by Ramjas students and professors, during which several people were assaulted.
According to the police’s report, some of the teachers and students who had participated in the event titled “Culture of Protest” had raised slogans such as “Hum kya mange azadi”, “Kashmir mange azadi”, “Bastar mange azadi”, “Police tum bahar jao”, “Hamara umar wapas lao”. The slogans were allegedly directed against the ABVP, the college authorities and the police, the report added.
Responding to a petition filed by law student Tarun Narang in March alleging misconduct of the police while handling the situation, Mr. Ranjan said all the officers present during the clashes were being examined and “four police officers have already been suspended”.