JNU: ABVP, AISA activists clash at GBM over alleged remarks on UP, Bihar students

Violence broke out on the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus early this morning, leaving several students injured. The clash took place between members of the All India Students' Association (AISA) and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) during a general body meeting (GBM) at the School of Social Sciences, with both sides blaming each other.

 The left-wing AISA alleged that the ABVP's "hooliganism" caused the violence, accusing the Sangh's student section of disrupting democratic norms at the prominent university. 

The Sangh-backed ABVP alleged that the violence was stirred by a left-wing counsellor and blamed JNU Student Union (JNUSU) president and AISA leader Nitish Kumar, NDTV reports.

GBMs are presently being conducted at JNU ahead of the student union elections. Currently, AISA occupies three of the four central panel posts, while the ABVP holds one.

The AISA claimed that ABVP members disrupted the GBM, heckled counsellors presenting work reports, and physically assaulted students, including grabbing a female student by the throat. 

In a statement, AISA stated that the violence was prompted by the ABVP's fear of losing the upcoming student union elections. They said that the JNUSU president and AISA leader Nitish Kumar was gheraoed for more than an hour by ABVP members.

On the other hand, the ABVP refuted the claims and accused JNUSU President Nitish Kumar and left-wing students of inciting the violence. The ABVP claimed that the clashes started after a left-wing counsellor allegedly made a divisive remark about students from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and ABVP members. 

According to the ABVP, left-wing students attacked a female student after others protested the remark, causing mayhem. The group blames the student union president for afailing to control the scene and allowing the meeting to continue as tensions rose.

Authorities have yet to publish an official statement regarding the clashes, but investigations into the incident are expected to continue.