India

New Delhi, Jan 6 (PTI) The wardens of the Sabarmati hostel at the Jawaharlal Nehru University resigned on Monday, stating in their resignation letters that they were quitting on "moral grounds" as they were unable to provide security to the hostel residents.

Sources close to wardens Ramavtar Meena and Prakash Chandra Sahoo, however, alleged that a group of students cornered them when they reached the hostel and accused them of not providing security.

New Delhi, Jan 6 (PTI) The Congress on Monday accused the government of unleashing "state-sponsored terrorism" in campuses across the country and said the violence in the JNU campus reminded it of the Nazi rule.

Demanding a judicial probe into the violence that erupted in the JNU campus on Sunday evening, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said the enquiry should look into the role of the government, the JNU administration and the Delhi police.

Aligarh, Jan 6 (PTI) The AMU Students Coordination Committee (AMUSCC) has demanded the resignation of JNU Vice Chancellor Prof Jagadesh Kumar, asking him to take "moral responsibility" for the violence in the varsity.

In a statement, AMUSCC said reports from JNU that even medical teams going to assess the injured were prevented by the mob from entering the JNU campus are shocking and only a time-bound judicial inquiry would uncover the full truth.

AMUSCCC is spearheading an agitation against the amended Citizenship Act.

New Delhi, Jan 6 (PTI) The CPI(M) on Monday demanded immediate sacking of JNU Vice Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar, alleging that he allowed rampage against students to continue on the university premises.

"The Vice Chancellor, who has been instrumental in systematically undermining and dismantling the country's premier university, had permitted this rampage to go on unchecked for hours. The Vice Chancellor should be sacked for this complicity in permitting this attack.

Mumbai, Jan 6 (PTI) The BSE benchmark Sensex crashed by nearly 788 points and the NSE Nifty tumbled around 234 points on Monday as heightened tensions in the Middle East kept investors on edge.

The 30-share BSE index ended at 40,676.63, dropping of 787.98 points, or 1.90 per cent. Similarly, the broader Nifty closed at 11,993.05, falling by 233.60 points, or 1.91 per cent.

On the Sensex chart, Bajaj Finance was the top loser, dropping 4.63 per cent, followed by SBI, IndusInd Bank, Maruti, HDFC, Hero MotoCorp, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank and Reliance Industries.

Kolkata, Jan 6 (PTI) Students of the Jadavpur and the Presidency universities on Monday took out rallies in the city to protest the violence inside the JNU campus in New Delhi.

The AISA and SFI organised a protest march from the varsity campus to nearby 8B Bus Stand and shouted slogans against the BJP government at the Centre and RSS-affiliate Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

They carried posters and placards condemning the JNU violence and demanded immediate arrests of the people involved in the incident.

New Delhi, Jan 6 (PTI) Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday dubbed the National Register of Citizens a "sinister and mischievous plan" to divide the country and alleged that the NRC-CAA-NPR exercise is part of the RSS-BJP plan to push its "divisive" agenda of a 'Hindu Rashtra'.

Terming the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) "patently discriminatory", he said three neighbouring countries have been included, while Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Bhutan excluded and some minority groups, including Muslims, kept out of its ambit.

New Delhi, Jan 6 (PTI) The elections to the 70-member Delhi Assembly will take place on February 8 and results will be declared on February 11, the Election Commission announced on Monday.

Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora said the notification for the polls will be issued on January 14 while the last date of withdrawal of candidature will be January 24.

The election is likely to witness a three-cornered contest involving the ruling Aam Aadmi Party, the BJP and the Congress.

NEW DELHI, Jan 6 (NNN-PTI) – University and college students staged protests and demonstrations across many cities in India, including Mumbai, Delhi and Aligarh, throughout Sunday night, against the violence that erupted inside the Delhi-based Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), injuring around 30 students.

Students belonging to various colleges, institutes and universities were seen continuing with their protests at Mumbai’s popular monument Gateway of India, till Monday morning.

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Delhi police are investigating how masked men burst into a premier university and attacked a student protest with sticks and rods, an officer said on Monday, the latest incident to ignite criticism of India’s ruling Hindu nationalists.

Sunday’s attack at a university long seen as a bastion of left-wing politics comes as students nationwide lead a campaign against a citizenship law introduced last month by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that is seen as targeting Muslims.