A 22-year-old student was injured during a police crackdown on the Cockroach Janta Party protest on Monday and is currently in the intensive care unit of RML Hospital. Her family, who chose to remain anonymous, said they shared an update on Sakshi’s condition and health Hindustan Times That their daughter was seriously injured in a stampede-like situation after the crowd began running after tear gas shelling.
The family added that Sakshi was at the site with her elder sister who was also injured during the protest. Follow Jantar Mantar LIVE updates
A family member said: “She was seriously injured after tear gas shelling and the crowd started running, after which she was injured in a stampede. She has serious injuries on her neck and is currently in the ICU and will undergo surgery. She was there with her elder sister, who sustained some injuries on her leg.”
Read also: Lathi charge, internet shutdown: How CJP’s ‘Chalo Sansad’ rally brought Delhi to a standstill
Others wounded
Sheikh Irshad Mansouri, 25, was also seriously injured during the protest after suffering cuts to his face, chest, back and neck.
Doctors at Lady Hardinge Hospital said he would undergo surgery because a few pellets had penetrated his eye and neck and had to be removed.
“I was standing outside the McDonald’s restaurant in Connaught Place and saw people raising slogans against Dharmendra Pradhan. I joined them. I wasn’t doing anything else. I don’t know why, but one of the RPF members came and started beating us. They fired tear gas shells… One of the shells hit my face and I felt like my face exploded. I couldn’t even scream because it hurt my neck. I felt like I was going to suffocate. I didn’t expect this to happen. My parents are in Jabalpur. I promised them this would be A peaceful demonstration. But the police treated us like terrorists. Two or three policemen passed by but did not help me. They picked up the cups and beat my friends. Fortunately, the people stayed there and took me to the hospital.
Also read: Protesters were ‘unruly, aggressive and violent’: Delhi Police at RJD protest
The students, who appeared to retake the NEET-UG exam, were also present at the protest site and were injured.
Anshu Mishra, a resident of Nangloi, told HT, “We recently retaked our NEET exams. We were completely following the issue from the beginning and wanted to be part of the march on Monday. We reached the protest site at 9 am and around 11.30 am the police started implementing lathi charge. A policeman first hit me on my back and neck, and when I fell, the police continued beating me. There are also many videos of me on the internet which are going viral. The police are seen showing me She beat me, and I was taken to RML by other protesters where I was given treatment.
His friend Keshav Jha (19), also from Nangloi, received seven stitches in his head after being injured during the protest. “When I was trying to protect my friend, the police came and started beating me too. They hit me directly on the head, which left me with seven stitches.”
He added: “We knew that the police would try to prevent us from going to the march, but we did not think that they would start beating us brutally, without thinking that someone might die as well.”
JP Nadda meets injured protesters
Union Health Minister JP Nadda visited Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and Lady Hardinge Hospital on Tuesday to interact with the injured protesters. During his visit, Nada held a meeting with doctors to review the medical care provided and the condition of the injured.
CJP spokesperson Sourav Das described his visit to the hospital as a “photo op” and said the government should tender the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
“We are yet to hear from the government. We are taking care of our protesters. The government should sack Pradhan instead of this photo!”, he said in a post on X.
Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi meet protesters
Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and KC Venugopal also met student protesters on Tuesday and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to apologize for what they described as “brutality” against the country’s youth.
“Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi ji and the organization’s general secretary Shri KC Venu Gopal met the students who were injured during police brutality and lathi attack at the youth protest yesterday. Today, the future of students in the country is being trampled on, and blame is being heaped on those who raise their voices, for which Narendra Modi must apologise. The students’ demand is quite clear – the government must take responsibility for the newspaper leak and That Dharmendra Pradhan resign.”
The protest continues
A day after the CJP did not advance in its march to Sansad and continued its protest at Jantar Mantar, hundreds of supporters gathered at the site to continue their protest.
The CJP has vowed Pradhan’s resignation, saying the movement will continue until that happens. However, Debke ruled out another march to parliament, saying: “The police will hurt young people again.”
He accused the Delhi Police of using “brutality and cruelty” during the protest, alleging that police personnel assaulted student protesters and used excessive force to disperse the crowd.
“Yesterday we saw how brutally and cruelly Delhi Police beat children. They smashed the heads of 12-year-old girls. It was male police officers who did it,” Debki said.
