Delhi Cops Bitten, Shoes & Stones Thrown At Them As JNU Protest Turns Violent

New Delhi: JNU protests turned violent on Thursday as demonstrators pelted stones, banners, sticks and shoes at Delhi Police officers, causing injuries to several cops. Policemen were also bitten by the protesters, who are demanding the enactment of UGC regulations along with the Rohith Act and the resignation of Vice Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit over her alleged casteist remarks at a recent podcast.

Kishangarh SHO Rajkumar, Sarojini Nagar SHO Atul Tyagi and Vasant Kunj ACP Ved Prakash are among the personnel injured in the violent clash.

A call for ‘Long March’ from the Sabarmati T point on Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus to the Ministry of Education was made by the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU), however, they were intimated that there was no permission of such type of protest by the JNU administration.

Rapid Action Force (RAF) had been deployed outside the university campus hours before the march began. The university gates were locked and barricades were installed outside the campus. Around 400-500 students gathered outside the JNU campus at around 3:20 pm. Meanwhile, students inside the university tried to break open the locked gates. As the police tried to stop them, a violent scuffle began.

Few students who became violent during the demonstration were detained. “How dare you lock the university? Shame on you. You don't even let us march for our rights. Hooligans are walking free while we students marching for our universities and education are being treated this way. We are thrashed and detained,” a detained student said.

Demands Of Protesters:

1. Enactment of UGC Regulations
2. Apology from Vice Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit
3. Resignation of Vice Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit
4. Implementation of Rohith Act

‘Deplorable…’: JNU Issues Statement

The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) issued a statement after the violent protests, stating that the demand of the protesters to implement the UGC regulations is in violation of the Supreme Court's order, which issued a stay on the regulations. The university further stated that the Vice Chancellor has no power over the regulations. 

“JNU is a public university hence accountable to the Government, the Parliament and the Indian taxpayers. It is deplorable that a woman OBC Vice Chancellor is instead attacked on false allegations, only to divert from the issue of violence and vandalism of public property,” the university added.

VC's Controversial Remark

During a podcast that was released earlier this month, JNU Vice Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit said that Dalits “cannot progress by being permanently a victim or playing the victim card”.

“You cannot progress by being permanently a victim or playing the victim card. This was done for the Blacks; the same thing was brought for Dalits here. By making somebody a devil, it is not easy to progress. It is a temporary type of drug."

This caused a massive stir in the university, with JNUSU condemning her “blatantly casteist statements".

The Vice-Chancellor made the remark while speaking about the University Grants Commission (UGC) 2026 regulations that seek to tackle caste-based discrimination on college campuses.

Also Read- Protest Erupts Outside JNU Over Rohith Act & VC Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit's 'Dalit Victim Card' Remark