NEW DELHI: A group of Jamia Millia Islamia students, who had gathered to march towards Parliament on Monday, alleged that the Delhi Police hit them on private parts and kicked them in their chest.
Hundreds of Jamia students, alumni and residents of nearby areas were stopped by police on Monday from taking out a march to Parliament against the Citizenship Amendment Act and a possible National Register of Citizens, leading to a stand-off during which scuffles broke out between protesters and security personnel.
The students alleged that the Delhi Police used coercive methods to isolate and abuse them. "The police did not hit us with the batons openly but used boots, metal gear and also tried to suffocate us. I was hit by boots, my hair was pulled and the policemen also hit me on my private parts," said Meeran Haider, a student, as he narrated his ordeal along with 20 others at a press conference. Delhi Police, however, denied use of force.
“The protesters were asked to disperse and there was a slight clash. However, no force was used,” said DCP (South-East) Rajendra Prasad Meena. Safoora Zargar, a member of the Jamia Coordination Committee, which has been organising the protests outside the university, said that she was crushed between three policemen. "It was inhumane. They refused to back down and kept taunting me," she alleged.
Rafia Ratangir said, "I saw some boys being hit so I tried to help them. A policeman pushed me and my shirt and abayah were pulled off. A policeman hit me on my private parts while another punched by breast so hard that I fell unconscious."