An unidentified man opened fire at controversial Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) scholar Umar Khalid outside the Constitution Club here on Monday but he escaped unhurt, police said.
The attack took place around 2.30 p.m. when Khalid was at a tea stall with friends.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Madhur Verma quoted Khalid as saying that he was attacked and that somebody pounced on him and pushed him.
“Thereafter he tried to fire at Khalid. But the person couldn’t fire immediately,” Verma said. “People started chasing him. Thereafter, according to Khalid, the attacker fired in the air.”
Another police officer said a pistol was recovered from the spot.
Khalid went to the Constitution Club to attend a “United Against Hate” programme. Police said CCTV cameras were being scrutinised to identify the attackers.
Khalid was rusticated and fined by JNU last month after he along with two other students — Kanhaiya Kumar and Anirban Bhattacharya — were found guilty of raising anti-national slogans during a poetry-reading gathering inside the campus on February 9, 2016.
