The Jamia Millia Islamia university has submitted an estimate of the property damage caused by the violence when Delhi Police entered its premises on the night of 15 December last year to the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).
The university told the government that property worth Rs 2.66 crore was damaged in the violence that took place on 15 December.
Damage Claimed by Jamia
The property damage includes damage to 25 CCTV cameras, which were worth Rs 4.75 lakh, reported The Indian Express.
While the university states that the police entered the premises without permission, Delhi Police has maintained that they entered the campus to look for ‘rioters’.
According to university officials, glass panes outside the library have been repaired but no renovation has been done inside, the damaged property has been left as it is so as to not affect the investigation into the incident.
Recently, several CCTV clips have been released both by the students and Delhi Police claiming two entirely different versions of what took place on the university campus on 15 December.
What Happened on 15 Dec
Police entered the Jamia campus following protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in the adjoining areas on 15 December. In the police violence that ensued, many students were injured and one of them even ended up losing an eye.
Students from the Old Reading Hall in Jamia had shared SOS videos and messages alleging that police had entered the room, thrashed students and shelled tear gas on them.
Hours after the siege, when journalists had entered the campus, they had found the reading hall damaged, with the chairs and tables broken.
What CCTV Footage Shows
CCTV footage released by the Jamia Coordination Committee shows Delhi police and paramilitary personnel breaking CCTV cameras, beating up students indiscriminately and vandalising property inside the old library.
However, the university has denied releasing the CCTV footage and said that JCC is “not an official body.”
“It has come to our notice that some video with regard to police brutality in Dr Zakir Husain Library of the Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) is in circulation. This is to clarify that the video has not been released by the university,” the statement read
Meanwhile, Delhi Police has stated that they have taken cognisance of the video clips and will investigate them.
Delhi HC Seeks Reply From Centre
The Delhi High Court on Monday, 17 February, issued notice in a petition filed asking for compensation for a student who was injured in police action.
The court asked the Centre and the Delhi Police to respond to the claims made in the petition, after the CCTV footage showing the Delhi Police beating students in the library was brought to the judges’ notice. The case will next be heard on 27 March.
(With inputs from The Indian Express.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)