Police personnel stand guard outside Aligarh Muslim University as students protest. (PTI)
A report prepared by a group of activists looking into the violence that broke out at the Aligarh Muslim University has said that the Uttar Pradesh police indulged in "unbridled human rights violations".
Releasing the report titled ''The Siege of AMU'' at a press conference in New Delhi today, activist and columnist Harsh Mander said the students' testimonies to the team had revealed that the university administration, district authorities and the UP government had failed in their duty to protect the campus and its residents.
Police used "stun grenades" against the "peacefully" protesting students which are normally used only against terrorists and dangerous criminals, Mr Mander said.
The UP government, however, has maintained that there were no police excesses while handling the violence at AMU and the personnel only did their lawful duty.
The report has claimed that when the violence began, even ambulances which rushed to move the injured students to hospitals were attacked by the cops. The drivers and paramedical staff were attacked and manhandled and asked to stay away from the injured students.
Social activist and author Natasha Badhwar, who was part of the team, said the students have claimed that police uttered "Jai Shri Ram" while attacking them and were totally "anti-Muslim" in their behaviour.
The AMU administration also invited the police forces and their weapons into the campus, said Mr Mander, who led the 13-member ''fact finding'' team of social activists.
"Apart from the breach of the discursive and educational space of the university, there were also unbridled human rights violations committed in AMU", he alleged.
Nearly 100 students were injured, 20 of them critically, during the state police's crackdown at protesting students at the University in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, on December 15.