New Delhi: Members of the BJP's students' wing, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), on Monday accused students of Left-backed affiliates of also being behind the desecration of a portrait of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on his birth anniversary, at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on Sunday. It had earlier accused the Congress-backed National Student's Union of India (NSUI) of orchestrating the vandalism at the office of the JNU students' body. The ABVP also put forward the demand of naming the JNUSU office after Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Speaking to ANI on Monday, Kumar Ashutosh, social media convenor, ABVP at JNU, said, "We had installed a portrait of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at the JNUSU office. However, members of Left-backed students' unions removed the portrait and threw the garland around it into a dustbin, resulting in a scuffle (with ABVP members). As many as 5-6 members were also injured in the clash." "We demand that the JNU administration and Delhi Police take strict action against them. We also want the JNUSU office to be named after Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj," the ABVP member said. He added, "It seems the only job of the Left-backed student activists is to push a narrative against stalwarts and warriors who built India and fought for it. This is a well-thought-out conspiracy of the Left." "They raised slogans against India on JNU campus in 2016 and are in indulging in similar mischiefs again. We at ABVP will always rise against such conspiracies to run down India or sully the country's image," Ashutosh said. ABVP workers allege vandalism of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's portrait in JNU, demand action Read @ANI story |https://t.co/MEoYXxgX6V#JNUShivajiMaharaj #ABVP pic.twitter.com/pzfWJU8Xdh — ANI Digital (@ani_digital) February 19, 2023 On whether they have reported the alleged vandalism to the police, Ashutosh said, "A police team arrived on campus after receiving our complaint. We will soon file a written complaint." The NSUI had earlier denied any involvement in the alleged desecration of the portrait of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on the JNU campus. NSUI general secretary Ganpat Chaudhary said ABVP members kept the portrait at the JNUSU office without permission because of which other students removed it. He said, "ABVP members kept the portrait at the JNUSU office seeking permission of the JNUSU delegation. Other students came and removed the portrait leading to a scuffle between two groups of students." ABVP activists also staged a protest while accusing the Left-backed students' activists of 'insulting' Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. ABVP JNU Secretary Umesh Chandra Ajmera said, "We had put up a portrait of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on the walls outside the student activity centre as a mark tribute. But the Communists couldn't digest this and vandalised the portrait," Ajmera told ANI. He further alleged that those involved in the incident were outsiders who entered the campus without permission. The ABVP Secretary urged the JNU administration to take strict action against the accused and stop such attempts to destroy the ambience on campus. "We request the JNU administration to take strict action against the accused and stop outsiders from entering the campus and creating a nuisance. These people should be stopped from giving the university a bad name," Ajmera added.
