Will continue to raise our voice, say Jadavpur University students

On Monday, at least 12 JU students were detained for protesting outside Narendrapur police station in South 24 Parganas district against the arrest of Dalit rights activist Sharadindu Uddipan after he was detained for “hurting Hindu sentiments” with a post on social media. The students alleged that they were also lathicharged by the police while they were raising slogans after being released around 9 pm on Thursday.

Seven of the students were released on bail on Friday. Joined by several other JU students and human rights organisations, the detained students alleged that they were “beaten up” in custody.

“Everyone has a right to protest. Why will one be beaten up for that? We were tortured in custody. All human rights were violated and we will continue the protest,” said Chandrasmita Choudhuri, a member of Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninst) Liberation, who was among the students who were detained during the protest.

“Different organisations who have joined our movement are likely to raise the matter before the West Bengal Commission of Women and State Human Rights Commission,” she said.

Issuing a statement, the Arts Faculty Students’ Union of the university also condemned the “brutal attack” on the protesting students.

The police had claimed that a number of people including JU students had gathered outside the Narendrapur police station and were “creating nuisance”. Two of the protesters, Molay Tewari and Chandrasmita Choudhuri, were released on PR bonds while the rest were produced in court and remanded to judicial custody, said the police.

On February 5, Dalit rights activist Sharadindu Uddipan’s Facebook post triggered a row for allegedly “hurting Hindu sentiments”.  As per sources, he was detained for provocation and an intent to incite but was later released on Sunday.