Oppn unites against JNU crackdown

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 13

The controversy over the Delhi Police’s crackdown on JNU students turned into a wider political battle today with Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury and CPI secretary D Raja joining the protest on the campus.

The police today detained seven more students even as Home Minister Rajnath Singh told Left and JD (U)  leaders that no innocent “will be harassed”, and that the “guilty will not be spared”. 

WATCH: Black flag shown, slogan "Rahul Gandhi Go Back" being raised in #JNU campushttps://t.co/hgXCuv0slS

— ANI (@ANI_news) February 13, 2016

The leaders had gone to meet him to seek the release of JNU Students’ Union president Kanhaiya Kumar, who was arrested on sedition charges yesterday for allegedly raising anti-India slogans during an event to mark the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. Left-leaning students have threatened to go on strike from Monday if he is not freed.

The BJP attacked Rahul, saying he and “his friends are speaking in the voice of LeT terrorist Hafiz Sayeed who had tweeted in support of the anti-India event at JNU”.

Rahul, while addressing the students, said that “most anti-national people were those who were suppressing the voice of students”. He was shown black flags by a group of ABVP activists. Congress leader Anand Sharma later in the evening alleged that he was attacked by ABVP activists.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter: “Using the police to terrorise everyone is not acceptable.” At the same time, he said anti-national activities should not be tolerated. Kejriwal later ordered a magisterial probe into the alleged raising of anti-India slogans.

A group of ex-servicemen also threatened to return their JNU degrees, saying they found it “difficult to be associated with an institution that has become a hub of anti-national activities”.

Chancellor of the university and former ISRO chief K Kasturirangan visited the campus and took stock of the situation, even as four Deans wrote to VC Jagdesh Kumar to protest against the manner in which police crackdown was “allowed” by the university.

 Kanhaiya's parents in Bihar said their son was being “victimised for his opposition to Hindutva politics”. 

(With agency inputs)