On 19^th September, two students, Atif Amin and Md. Sajid, were killed by the Special Cell in an ‘encounter’ at Batla House. In this operation, Inspector Sharma also lost his life. While the Delhi Police, the Government and sections of the Media are trying to present it as an open and shut case of ‘encounter with terrorists’, the glaring inconsistencies in the Police story, have raised serious doubts about their claims. Further, the arbitrary arrests and detentions of young Muslim students, including friends of Atif -- who had gone on record testifying their relation with the late Atif Ameen and Mohd. Sajid, in order to clarify themselves in public – created a widespread sense of panic, alienation and hurt in the Jamia Nagar locality. This was further fuelled by a sensationalist media which continuously fed images of “Islamic terrorists”. One magazine, went so far as to publish “confessions” of the arrested boys as ‘proof’ of their ‘guilt’. Such confessions extracted in police custody under duress have no legal validity and are in fact a contempt of court. Not to be left behind the Delhi police paraded the so- called terrorists wrapped in an Arabic headgear, which fed into the larger Imperialist ploy to present terrorism and Islam as synonymous. 

As citizens, we are all concerned about the rising violence across the country – from repeated explosions to communal violence against the minorities in Dhule, Kandhamal, Adilabad, Udalguri (Assam) and elsewhere. However, we are also highly critical of the simplistic associations made by the State and media between terrorism and Islam and the refusal to recognize the terrorization of minorities by the Hindutva groups, in which scores have lost their lives and thousands rendered homeless in just this year.

In response to the present circumstances, a group of teachers in Jamia Millia Islamia have come together under the banner of Jamia Teachers’ Solidarity Group to campaign for justice and truth. Given the inconsistencies; a) in police versions to the media, b) conflicting media accounts regarding the incident, c) violation of procedure both before and after encounter, d) arbitrary arrests of people in and around the Batla House area, we demand that a Judicial Enquiry be instituted under a sitting Judge of the SC to enquire into the Batla House ‘Encounter’ and that the investigations be handed over to the CBI.