Students displayed banners with messages such as ‘Free Palestine’, ‘No more money for Netanyahu’, and ‘Stop the genocide now.’
Team Clarion
NEW DELHI — The US Ambassador to India had to cancel an interaction session at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) this week after students protested against his visit to the campus because of the Joe Biden administration’s involvement in the Gaza genocide.
The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union (JNUSU) spearheaded the protest which forced the university administration to cancel the event which was to be attended by the US envoy.
The School of International Studies of the university invited American Ambassador Eric Garcetti for an interaction at 4 pm on Monday on the topic ‘The Most Consequential Relationship of the Century: US-India Ties.’
Students displayed banners with messages such as ‘Free Palestine’, ‘No more money for Netanyahu’, and ‘Stop the genocide now’, showing strong opposition to the US policies in the Middle East.
In a statement, the students union said: “On April 29, 2024, JNUSU, representing the collective voice of the student body, unequivocally declared that JNU’s premises shall not provide a platform for administrations and personnel representing nations complicit in terrorism and genocide committed by Israel. The scheduled appearance of Ambassador Eric Garcetti, amidst the ongoing atrocities committed against the Palestinian people, was met with fierce opposition, compelling the JNU administration to cancel the program”.
Talking about the cancellation of the event, former JNUSU president Aishe Gosh said The US ambassador was supposed to visit JNU… and then he had to back out. We stand with the protesting students on various campuses in the US who are being targeted for standing with Palestine. We will not allow genociders any space on our campus. Free Palestine”.
She also posted a banner which read “Genociders are not welcome”.
On the other hand, the JNUSU said the decision to invite a representative of the US government, which supports the heinous acts of genocide perpetrated by Israel in Palestine, stands in direct contradiction to the values of justice, human rights, and solidarity that JNU upholds.
“While the US government incarcerates hundreds of its university students protesting against its involvement in genocide, the JNU administration’s move to welcome its ambassador onto our campus is an affront to our principles,” it read.
