Mayukh Biswas, general secretary of the SFI, the student wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), said, “They will not stop the voice of dissent.”
Prior to one of those demonstrations at Delhi’s Jamia Millia Islamia University, 13 students were detained amid heavy police deployment. Police said the university accused the students of creating “ruckus on the street” and said they did not have permission to hold the show.
Najma Akhtar, the university’s vice-chancellor, told Reuters: “There is no chance that anyone who tries to disturb university discipline will go scot-free.”
The students said that a day earlier, bricks were thrown at students at Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University hoping to watch the documentary, allegedly by members of a right-wing group.
Student leader Aishe Ghosh said they were watching the documentary on their phones and laptops after the power cut about half an hour before the scheduled screening.
The university had refused permission and threatened disciplinary action if the documentary was screened.
“It was clearly the administration which cut off the electricity,” Ghosh said. “We are encouraging campuses across the country to hold screenings as an act of resistance against this censorship.”