‘My blood boils at how the youth is tortured’: Naseeruddin Shah condemns Delhi Police action at CJP protest

Naseeruddin Shah has thrown his support behind the students protesting at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, saying he is both deeply emotional and furious over the police action against demonstrators during Monday’s Chalo Sansad March.

In a strongly worded video message, the veteran actor urged the protesting students not to give up and warned the government that the events would not be forgotten.

“I would like to say two things to you all. The first thing is that if an ignorant person leads this country, then his heart will want the whole country to become as ignorant, incomprehensible, and merciless as he is. After completing two illustrious acting courses from the National School of Drama (NSD) and the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), what I have learned the most about the craft is from those children and educated personalities whom I tried to teach once.”

Shah then spoke directly about the treatment of the young protesters.

“I sympathize with them. Iss waqt mera dil bhi bhara hua hai aur main gusse se khaul bhi raha hoon yeh dekhkar ke humare bachchon ke saath kis tarah zulm ka bartav kiya ja raha hai unn gundon ke haathon joh mujhe America ke agents ki yaad dilate hai, muh pe naqab lagaye hue, haath mein danda liye hue. Kabhi apne bachchon ke baare mein bhi socha karo aur yeh bhi socho tumhara anjaam tumhe bhi ek din milega zaroor. (I am emotional, and at the same time, my blood boils seeing how the youth are being tortured by those goons who remind me of the mask-wearing agents in America. Think about your own children too. One day, you will also have to face the consequences of your actions,)” Naseeruddin Shah added.

He also had a message for the students, asking them to continue their fight despite the events at the protest.

“Sometimes, think about your children, and also think that one day, you will also face the same fate. I want to tell all these children not to lose hope. Many people sympathise with you. Many people are with you. Keep fighting. I have always expected a lot from the nation’s youth, and my confidence in them has only gotten stronger now. I’d also like to tell the Government, sab yaad rakha jaayega (everything shall be remembered).”

The CJP protests

The actor’s comments came after tensions rose in Delhi on Monday, when police carried out a lathi charge during the Chalo Sansad March at Jantar Mantar. The action triggered widespread outrage and drew criticism from several public figures.

The demonstration took place days after activist Sonam Wangchuk was removed from the protest site and shifted to Safdarjung Hospital.

Wangchuk, the protesting students and the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), which has been leading the demonstrations, have been demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged NEET-UG paper leak and other alleged irregularities in the examination process.

Shah is among several Bollywood personalities to have voiced support for the protesters. Sonu Sood, Dia Mirza, Shabana Azmi, Swara Bhasker, Prakash Raj, Diljit Dosanjh, Riteish Deshmukh, Vir Das, Genelia Deshmukh, Richa Chadha, Sonakshi Sinha and Ayush Sharma have also spoken out in support of the demonstrations.