JNU registrar denies expulsion of students

Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) registrar Pramod Kumar on Monday rubbished media reports that claimed that the three students involved in the protests for Afzal Guru had been expelled.

“The expulsion of Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattarcharya is completely a media creation,” said the registrar. 

In a telephonic conversation, he stressed that the reports had no substance as neither a meeting of the governing body was scheduled, nor were the top officials —  including the Vice-Chancellor, the Proctor and himself — present in the campus.

On Monday morning, several media organisations reported that JNU students Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya — who were jailed recently for sedition and are currently out on bail — were likely to be rusticated. 

The reports claimed that the three, along with two other students, will be removed from the university for two to five years and others may attract suspension for two semesters. They also 

claimed that the JNU administration may also fine them Rs 10,000 each.

The quantum of punishment against 21 students had been decided following an internal inquiry by JNU into the controversial event. Other students facing action include former JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) president Ashutosh, former vice-president Anant, current general secretary Rama Naga and a few others, who are likely to be suspended from the present academic session.

Rejecting the report of the JNU internal committee, Naga said they had been saying “from the beginning” that it is biased and anti-student. 

On February 12, Delhi Police had arrested the JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar in connection with the case.