Kanhaiya fears for life, moves SC for bail

As Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) President Kanhaiya Kumar, who was arrested on sedition charges and is now in judicial custody, on Thursday, moved the Supreme Court for bail, protests for his release resonated across universities in India. Kumar was arrested by Delhi Police on February 12 and is in judicial custody till March 2.  His bail petition was mentioned before a bench of justices J. Chelameswar and AM Sapre by senior advocate Soli J Sorabjee and Raju Ramachandran, who wanted it to be heard on Thursday itself. 

However, when the bench suggested that they would consider it on Friday, they agreed. Kumar said in his petition that there was no need for his custodial interrogation as he has already been sent to judicial custody. In the petition, filed through advocate Anindita Pujari, the accused claimed his innocence and said no purpose would be served by keeping him in the jail as the police have been finding it difficult to produce him even in the court. Kanhaiya has submitted that there is a threat to his life and there was a need for the apex court to intervene to ensure his safety.

Meanwhile protests erupted across the country, in the Capital various colleges joined protesting JNU students in the march from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar. JNU Vice-Chancellor Jagadesh Kumar had appealed to participating students to reconsider their decision, citing “safety” reasons. Ignoring, VC’s appeals, students showed up in numbers to protest Kanhaiya Kumar’s arrest. “While we appreciate your right to protest, we are apprehensive of your safety outside the campus. We, therefore, appeal to you to reconsider your decision for undertaking the march outside the campus,” the VC said in an advisory issued to students.

The JNU issue has also found support on campuses across the country especially Jadavpur University (JU) in Kolkata. On Thursday, Left-backed students’ groups organised a gathering to protest the alleged storming of JU and tearing off posters by Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) supporters on Wednesday. Later, the gathering poured into the streets near the main gate of the campus. ABVP supporters, led by actors-turned-BJP leaders Rupa Ganguly and Locket Chatterjee, too staged a rally and marched towards JU chanting nationalistic slogans and waving the national flag, but were blocked by the police. As the news spread, teachers and security personnel of the university formed a human chain in front of the university as both sides’ chanted slogans against each other.

In Chennai folk singer Kovan and over 50 others were detained by the police here on Thursday for protesting against Kanhaiya’s arrest. Kovan, who had earlier been arrested by the state government on similar charges, and 57 others, were held for protesting near the Shastri Bhavan, housing central government offices, police said. The protestors, who raised slogans against the BJP-led government at Centre, demanded the release of Kumar, they said.

In Patna, ABVP activists were in the thick of things, clashing with members of the All India Students Federation (AISF). Police said a group of Communist Party of India-affiliated AISF, along with the student wing of Bihar’s ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal, took out a march in support of Kanhaiya Kumar.