An Indian student in the United States who died in an accident in Seattle, will be awarded the University degree posthumously amid outrage over a US policeman’s response to the incident. Jaahnavi Kandula, 23, was killed by a police car traveling at 74 miles per hour in a 25-mile-per-hour zone.
The bodycam footage captured a US police officer joking while discussing the accident that caused Jaahnavi’s death. The Northeastern University, where the Indian student from Andhra Pradesh was studying, has decided to award her a degree posthumously.
“We also recognise that our Indian student community—across all Northeastern campuses—has been especially impacted by this tragedy and its aftermath. We stand in solidarity with you and have every expectation that the ongoing investigations will bring a measure of justice and accountability," Northeastern University’s Chancellor said in a statement posted on social media platform X.
This step comes as Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, other lawmakers and community members have urged the Seattle Police to pursue its investigation into the tragic death of Jaahnavi with all seriousness.
“Jaahnavi Kandula’s death was a horrible tragedy, and the scale of her loss should not be diminished or mocked by anyone,” Krishnamoorthi said in response to the recording of a Seattle Police officer laughing about the death of Jaahnavi Kandula. “The recording of a Seattle Police officer making light of her death and questioning the value of her life is disgusting and unacceptable. I urge the Seattle Police Department to pursue its investigation into this matter with the seriousness it demands,” Krishnamoorthi said on Thursday.
Jaahnavi, a youth student at Washington’s Northeastern University was struck at a pedestrian crossing on the night of January 23. In the video, Daniel Auderer, who is captured on body camera while discussing the fatal collision, can be heard saying, “Yeah, just write a check. USD 11,000. She was 26 anyway, she had limited value." Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal strongly condemned the incident.
“Jaahnavi Kandula was killed by a speeding police car. Then, police officers joked about her death and devalued her life. I’m sick to my stomach. This is exactly what happens when we normalise xenophobia and racism. It needs to stop,” the Democratic lawmaker said.
Kshama Sawant, a member of the Seattle City Council has called for an independent elected community oversight with full powers over the police following the incident. “Working people need to demand an independent, public investigation into this outrage," the Indian-American political leader said in a post shared on X.
Sawant said that the “so-called Office of Professional Accountability has singularly failed to hold Seattle Police accountable”, noting that “cops overseeing cops will never work". “We need independently elected community oversight with full powers over the police. But to win this, working people will need to organise independently of the Democratic Party," the 49-year-old politician and economist said.
She also shared a picture that mentioned that Daniel Auderer has been the subject of 18 investigations since 2014, and is involved in lawsuits costing the city over USD 1.7 million, with not one of them having resulted in him being fired, let alone facing legal consequences.
Demanding justice for Kandula and the resignation of two Seattle police officers, more than 200 people from different communities held a rally at an intersection in Seattle where she was struck and killed by a speeding police patrol car. They called for accountability for the officer who killed her and for a police union leader’s comments about the crash, which some described as “disgusting” and “abhorrent.”
(With PTI inputs)