A Delhi Police report on the protests that began at Jawaharlal Nehru University after a student went missing on October 15 warns that the matter could be viewed through a "communal lens." Najeeb Ahmad left his JNU hostel after he was allegedly beaten up by members of the right-wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, with whom he had been in an altercation. The routine report, prepared by Delhi Police's Special Branch, concludes that political organisations may try to "mobilise and polarise supporters on this issue."

Ahmad is a postgraduate student and was living in JNU's Mahi-Mandavi hostel when he got into a spat with the ABVP while students were campaigning for mess secretary elections. Ahmad was initially described by university officials as an "accused" in the events of that night, but after he went missing, the police registered a case of abduction and offered a reward for any information on his whereabouts. Following orders from Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, the Delhi Police also formed a special team to trace Ahmad.

Ahmad's disappearance sparked protests spearheaded by the JNU Student Union, with its members keeping administration officials locked inside a building on campus for nearly 24 hours starting Wednesday afternoon. This was followed by the appearance of graffiti on campus calling Muslims "terrorists". Moreover, the protests have taken a "Left vs ABVP" undertone, raising fears that the unrest has turned communal.

"It is pertinent to mention that one [of] the students in this issue namely Vikrant belongs to ABVP and Najeeb belongs to [a particular] religious community in Uttar Pradesh. This incident can flare up as communal issue," said the confidential internal report submitted to the Delhi Police Commissioner's office.

It also suggested that this incident might lead to political polarisation. "Keeping in view the overall situation in the campus and student sentiments, there are chance(s) different student and political organisations may try to mobilise and polarise supporters on this issue. Moreover, the media will give the matter larger coverage through a communal lens," the report said.