Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday, December 16, said she was unaware of what happened at Jamia but warned that people must be wary of ‘jihadists, Maoists, separatists’ infiltrating student protests.
“I don’t know what happened at Jamia last night; we must be wary of jihadists, Maoists, separatists getting into student protests,” Sitharaman was quoted as saying by PTI.
The Minister also accused the Congress party of ‘whipping up people’s emotions’ on issues like the Citizenship Amendment Act(CAA). She further added that this showed their frustration.
On Sunday, December 15, protests in Delhi’s Jamia Milia Islamia(JMI) had taken a violent turn after clashes erupted between students and the police. The police reportedly barged inside the campus, including the college library, canteen, and the mosque, fired tear gas shells and dragged students out to beat them up.
Following the violence, massive protests have erupted across the country with college students at its helm.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister(PM) Narendra Modi on Monday said that the protests were ‘deeply distressing’ and urged citizens to maintain peace.
Violent protests on the Citizenship Amendment Act are unfortunate and deeply distressing.
Debate, discussion and dissent are essential parts of democracy but, never has damage to public property and disturbance of normal life been a part of our ethos.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 16, 2019
This is the time to maintain peace, unity and brotherhood. It is my appeal to everyone to stay away from any sort of rumour mongering and falsehoods.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 16, 2019
“The need of the hour is for all of us to work together for the development of India and the empowerment of every Indian, especially the poor, downtrodden and marginalised. We cannot allow vested interest groups to divide us and create a disturbance,” added the PM.
The need of the hour is for all of us to work together for the development of India and the empowerment of every Indian, especially the poor, downtrodden and marginalised.
We cannot allow vested interest groups to divide us and create disturbance.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 16, 2019
He further added that CAA does not affect any citizens of India belonging to any religion.
I want to unequivocally assure my fellow Indians that CAA does not affect any citizen of India of any religion. No Indian has anything to worry regarding this Act. This Act is only for those who have faced years of persecution outside and have no other place to go except India.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 16, 2019
Also Read: As India Burns, Students Unite Across The Country In Support Of Jamia, AMU Students
