New Delhi: 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. Over a thousand students are protesting in the area and have removed barricades placed by the police, to prevent them from taking out a march. The policemen, who have water cannons on standby, are trying to calm down and push back the students. They have called in reinforcements.
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 detained and is being questioned 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 told 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.
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