New Delhi, In anticipation of the upcoming inauguration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, slogans advocating the rebuilding of Babri Masjid have emerged on the walls of Jawaharlal Nehru University’s (JNU) Language Study Centre.
Photos of the graffiti, discovered by students on Wednesday night, gained widespread attention on social media. Notably, the slogans were found above the name of the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), the student wing of the Congress party.
However, NSUI’s JNU unit president, Sudhanshu Shekhar, clarified that the organization’s name was already present in black marker, and the controversial slogans were added later in red marker. Shekhar accused this act as an attempt to tarnish NSUI’s image and urged stringent action from the JNU administration.
JNU’s chief security officer, Naveen Yadav, claimed unawareness of the incident. He mentioned a prior instance of caste-targeted slogans a few months ago but admitted to no investigation. There has been no immediate response from the JNU vice chancellor and the registrar.
This incident follows earlier occurrences of controversial slogans at JNU, including anti-Brahmin messages and those related to Kashmir. In October, a committee was formed to address repeated incidents of “anti-national” slogans on campus. The university is considering installing CCTVs in strategic locations to enhance security.
While the Chief Proctor Office manual prescribes a fine of Rs 10,000 for writing controversial slogans, the Language Study Centre lacks CCTV coverage to monitor defacement of walls.
