'Where is Najeeb', JNUSU asks as students protest inside campus amid heavy police deployment

new delhi: Amid heavy police deployment, JNUSU Thursday protested demanding justice for Najeeb. Two tier barricades had been set up inside and outside the campus main gate, which the students forcefully removed, as the varsity security tried to stop them.

Najeeb Ahmed was a first-year M.Sc Biotechnology student who went missing from JNU hostel under suspicious circumstances on October 15, 2016. As the students had called for protest in the evening, the administration took out a notice at the last minute requesting students to not protest in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"While right to protest is well-recognised and respected, violating the Covid-19 guidelines to refrain from all kinds of protests during a deadly pandemic afflicting the country sets a wrong example, particularly when it is staged by students of a prestigious university, such as JNU. The protesting students are requested not to sully the image of the university by violating the guidelines," the notice read.

Despite that the students continued their protest. JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh while addressing the media said, "If the police and CBI had taken efforts in finding Najeeb, things would have been different. Our only demand is justice for Najeeb. We gave a call for protest and after an unofficial order you can see so much force has been placed. We are following guidelines. We appeal from the Delhi Police to not target students."

Meanwhile, Najeeb's mother Fatime Nafees requested support in an online protest demanding justice for her son. "It's been four years that Najeeb was taken away from me. If my health was okay, I would have come to Delhi and protested there. But we will be protesting online," she added.