Gunfire reported near Jamia Millia Islamia University; FIR registered under IPC 307, Sec 27 Arms Act

An incident of firing was reported on late Sunday night near Gate number 5 of Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) University. The firing was reportedly carried out by two unidentified persons. No injuries have been reported till now. An FIR has been registered at the Jamia Nagar police station against the unknown persons under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 27 of the Arms Act, sources said.

News agencies reported the incident of firing at around Sunday midnight.

Delhi: An incident of firing has been reported near Gate number 5 of Jamia Millia Islamia University. More details awaited. pic.twitter.com/2L06zSRACg

— ANI (@ANI) February 2, 2020

An update from the Jamia Coordination Committee around this time stated that the firing was done by "two unidentified persons". One of them was allegedly wearing a "red jacket" and driving a "red scooty". Further, the JCC update added that the Vehicle No. was 1532.

"Firing has been done at Gate No.5 of Jamia Millia Islamia right now by two unidentified persons. As per report, one of them was wearing Red Jacket and driving a Red Scooty having Vehicle no. 1532. No injury as far now," the JCC statement informed. Eyewitness reports from the site stated that the scooty arrived from the side of the Jamia Nagar police station, slowed down near the university gate where one of the two suspects allegedly fired his gun, and then sped up and fled the scene towards Sukhdev Vihar before people at the site could catch the vehicle down.

The Deputy Commissioner of Delhi Police (DCP) said, "The Station House Officer (SHO) is present at the spot, waiting for confirmation and details." ACP Jagdish Yadav also addressed the media, saying that the statement of the students have been recorded and the police are now verifying CCTV footage near Gate No. 5 to verify the identity of the individuals. "The students' statements have been taken. An FIR has been registered against the unidentified individuals under IPC Section 307 and Section 27 of the Arms Act," the ACP said, adding, "A team has been deployed to collect CCTV footage from near the gate where the incident was reported. The probe is on, further updates will be provided."

Right after the incident, people gathered in protest outside the university and chanted "Delhi Police Haye Haye". Students also gheraoed the Jamia Nagar SHO over "lack of police presence and barricading" after he reached the site. 

#WATCH Delhi: People gather in protest outside Jamia Millia Islamia University following an incident of firing at gate no.5 of the university. 2 scooty-borne unidentified people had fired bullets at the spot. SHO (Station house officer) is present at the spot. Investigation is on pic.twitter.com/EKlxQPBVum

— ANI (@ANI) February 2, 2020

Delhi: Students of Jamia Millia Islamia University and others gather outside Jamia Nagar Police station. An incident of firing near gate number 5 of the university, by two scootey-borne unidentified people, was reported earlier tonight. No injuries were reported in the incident. pic.twitter.com/XDlgqxmBQK

— ANI (@ANI) February 2, 2020

This comes after two recent incidents of firing in one week shook the national capital.

The post of the DCP (southeast Delhi) was assumed earlier in the evening by Kumar Gyanesh, as the Election Commission (EC) on Sunday shunted out Delhi's southeast DCP Chinmoy Biswal.

"As decided by the Election Commission, this is to convey that Chinmoy Biswal IPS (2008), DCP (southeast), stands relieved from his present post with immediate effect and shall report to MHA," the Election Commission spokesperson said.

"In view of the ongoing situation, Commission directs that Kumar Gyanesh, DANIPS (1997) senior-most additional DCP (southeast) shall take charge of DCP (southeast) immediately from Chinmoy Biswal IPS," he added.

On Thursday, a 17-year-old man opened fire on students protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Delhi's Jamia area on Thursday. The person had been identified as a resident of Jewar in Greater Noida. Although the law of the land prevents the individual from being named, it can be said that the man prefixed his name with 'Rambhakt' on Facebook. Students of Jamia were taking out a march from the university to Mahatma Gandhi's memorial at Raj Ghat on the occasion of Martyrs Day.

One day after this incident, a man opened fire in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh area near the site where locals have been staging anti-CAA-NRC protests for over a month. Videos posted by news agencies from the area showed the man chanting 'Jai Shri Ram' and proclaiming that India belongs only to Hindus.

Massive protests have emerged across the country against the CAA and the NRC.

The new citizenship law promises citizenship to members of 6 non-Muslim communities from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who entered India before December 31, 2014.

Critics say that the new law is against the secular nature of the Indian Constitution and clubbed with the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) may be misused to strip away some Muslims' citizenship in the country. The BJP, however, has argued that the law has nothing to do with India's Muslims and only helps those who fled religious persecution in the neighbouring countries.