Here we go again

I have been planning to write a well-researched piece on difference between the protests against Mandal I vs. Mandal II. Unfortunately my demanding schedule at the moment is preventing me to allocate as much time to this blog as I would like to.

One of the issues that caught my attention early on was that this time around here was a complete lack of violence involved, forget about the horrific cases of student suicides. Guess I was wrong.

The strike decision came after about 600 medical students gathered for an anti-quota rally which turned violent. The students wanted to protest outside Arjun Singh's Akbar Road residence, but were not allowed to go there. The drama started at 8 am and continued almost till 5 pm. The cops roughed up several students and rained lathis on them to break up the protest. By afternoon, a frustrated police force turned on the students, all of them wearing medical overalls and stethoscopes, with tear gas shells and water cannons. Apart from leaving several students bruised, the protest brought traffic to a halt in many parts of central Delhi.

I am not willing to speculate at the moment how much of this protest was inspired by the recent blockbuster Rang de Basanti.