A man opened fire at people protesting the citizenship law near the Jamia Millia Islamia university in Delhi this afternoon, unleashing chaos and panic in the area. A student of the university has been injured. The entire incident unfolded despite a huge contingent of armed policemen, in riot gear, standing just metres away from the man.

In a video, the young man, wearing a black jacket and a pair of white trousers, can be seen walking on a heavily-guarded road, waving a gun as he shouts "Yeh lo azaadi (here's your freedom)" at the protesters. He stood meters away from dozens of policemen deployed outside the university, where protesters had gathered for a march. He also shouted "Delhi Police zindabad (Long live Delhi Police)".

The shooter has been arrested after he was overpowered. "The crowd was coming from Jamia. The person came from the crowd... He is being questioned," senior police officer Chinmoy Biswal NDTV. Police sources said the shooter's name is Rambhakt Gopal Sharma. He is 19 and is from Uttar Pradesh's Jewar, near Delhi.

The man had gone live on Facebook minutes before he drew out his gun. Videos on his Facebook timeline showed him walking around in the crowded road - the venue of the protest - with a red backpack on. His previous posts seemed to indicate that he had come prepared for the consequences of his action. "On my last journey, take me draped in saffron and shout slogans of Jai Shri Ram," one of them in Hindi read. Another more threatening post read, "Shaheen Bagh, Game Over", referring to a massive protest against the citizenship law taken up by women and children.

"We were standing near the barricades when suddenly this outsider, whom none of us recognised, tried to disturb the peace of the march. He marches forward with a revolver in his hand. We were all trying to stop him and calm him down. The policemen were standing there. We tried to approach them to stop that guy. But they just kept standing there simply. When we tried to take the revolver from his hand, he shot one of our friends," Jamia student Aamna Asif, who witnessed the terrifying incident, told NDTV.

"He was definitely not one of us. He was from outside," she added.

The student who was shot at has been identified as Shadaab Farukh and was seen being taken away, as he walked with his left hand in blood. He has been taken to the trauma centre of the All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

The locality has been heavily barricaded after the firing and traffic has been diverted from all the roads near the area. Three metro stations are closed. 

Violence broke out at Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia university last month during a protest against the citizenship law; the police were accused of using excessive force on students. Earlier this month, masked goons attacked students and teachers at JNU, triggering nationwide outrage and protests.

Source NDTV

BDST: 1742 HRS, JAN 30, 2020
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