Various Jammu-based political parties, including J&K National Panthers Party (JKNPP), Jammu Province People's Forum (JPPF) and Sri Ram Sena have called for Jammu bandh Thursday against the alleged police assault on outstation students at National Institute of Technology (NIT), Srinagar, the Press Trust of India reported.
A two-member team from Ministry of Human Resources Development (HRD) visited the NIT Srinagar campus Wednesday to take stock of the situation following the non-local students' demand to shift NIT out of Kashmir valley.
"We unanimously decided to observe complete Bandh in Jammu on April 7," MS Katoch, working president of JPPF, was quoted as saying by PTI.
While condemning the use of physical force on the students by the J&K police, Katoch demanded security for students in the campus.
He said the incident could lead to the alienation of thousands of Kashmiri students studying outside the state and create a sense of insecurity among them.
The parents of the non-local students have reportedly also expressed fear regarding the safety of their children at NIT Srinagar campus.
The tension at the NIT campus simmered after two groups of students clashed during the World Cup T20 match between West Indies and India. The clash reportedly happened after Kashmiri students celebrated the West Indies team win. The non-local students, meanwhile, are said to have chanted Bharat Mata Ki Jai slogans and unfurled the Indian flag on the campus. The NIT authorities suspended classes after the clashes, in which several students were injured.
The non-local students accused the police of lathicharging and beating them up when they were trying to organise a protest rally Wednesday.
The J&K police said some non-Kashmiri students wanted the NIT campus to be shifted from the Kashmir valley, according to India today. The confrontation between the students and police took place when nearly 300 NIT students were trying to leave the campus, the India Today quoted police sources as saying.
Meanwhile, both the state and central governments are keeping a tight vigil on the developments in the NIT Srinagar campus.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh called Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and discussed with her the situation in NIT. J&K's Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh said the police resorted to force only after some students tried organising a protest march in the campus, ANI reported.
