JNU row: Kanhaiya Kumar 'beaten' in court complex, sent to judicial custody; SC asks Bassi to ensure safety

 

Not only Kumar, several journalists were again beaten up by a section of lawyers at the Patiala House Court - much like what happened on Monday - before the JNUSU president was brought there.

The court directed Delhi Police and the superintendent of the Tihar jail to ensure his safety. 

The JNUSU president has been booked under sedition charge in connection with an event at JNU where anti-national slogans were allegedly raised last week. He was arrested by Delhi Police on February 12.

I do not support anti-national activity​, says Kanhaiya Kumar​

Kanhaiya Kumar told the court that he was attacked by a group of people wearing black robes while he was being escorted by police to the court room. The leftist All India Students Federation (AISF) leader was arrested on February 12 on after anti-India slogans were raised at an event held at the JNU campus on February 9 to commemorate the execution of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. 

Kanhaiya Kumar, in a statement leaked to the media, appealed to students to maintain calm and said he does not support anti-national activity. 

He condemned the February 9 event at the JNU and said those who shouted the allegedly anti-national slogans included "some people from JNU and a section of outsiders". 

Kanhaiya moved to Tihar Jail, kept under high security

Kumar was tonight taken to Tihar Jail and kept in a separate cell, following which authorities have sounded a high security alert inside the prison complex, and are keeping a round-the-clock watch for the safety of the student leader.

"Kanhaiya who was brought to Tihar at around 8 pm has been lodged in a separate cell of ward number 4 of jail number 3. Two Tamil Nadu Special Police personnel have been deputed to keep a round-the-clock watch over him and ensure his safety," said a senior Tihar official, as per PTI.

"In view of the prevailing tension over sedition charges being faced by Kanhaiya, maximum vigil will be maintained and a high security alert has been sounded to ensure all the precautions and measures are taken to prevent any untoward incident," the official said.

SC asks  Commissioner of Police​ to ensure safety

On the other hand, a team of senior lawyers today told the Supreme Court, which had asked them to get a first hand assessment, that situation at the Patiala House Court was 'unprecedented' and there was an 'atmosphere was of fear and terror'.

Senior lawyers including Kapil Sibal, Indira Jaising and advocate Prashant Bhushan, drew the attention of the bench of Justices J Chelameswar and A M Sapre to the "extra-ordinary" situation in Patiala House Court where security and safety was under threat.

They also informed the apex court that JNU students' union president Kanhaiya Kumar was "manhandled" while being produced in court.

The court stepped in to rush a six-member panel of advocates appointed by it to Patiala House courts in the afternoon after it was apprised of fresh incidents of violence involving persons in black robes.

The lawyers team gave an oral report mentioning that there was a total breakdown of law and order in which Kumar was 'manhandled'.

The bench then made it clear that 'the responsibility is exclusively is that of the Commissioner of Police, Delhi to ensure the safety of the accused'.

The court had earlier in the day given a slew of directions and limited the entry of lawyers, journalists and others in the court premises in the wake of violence on Monday when scribes, teachers and students of JNU were thrashed by the lawyers.

Intelligence agencies name 4 suspects behind JNU anti-India event

 

Anirban Bhattacharya, Riazul Haq and Rubina Saifee, the four students of JNU, have been named by intelligence agencies as suspects behinf organising pro-Afzal Guru event at the JNU campus as well as participating in anti-India activities.

All the four JNU students are said to be members of democratic student union, which is considered to be a frontal organisation of CPI-Maoists.

According to India Today report, intelligence agencies have claimed that these four students activists used to work on the instructions of Delhi University professor G.N. Saibaba, who is currently lodged at Pune central jail, on charges of having links with Maoists.

Reports said that democratic student union member Omar Khalid had submitted an application to Jawaharlal Nehru University administration, seeking permission to organise a cultural evening in the campus on February 9. He was granted permission by the JNU administration.

Posters were put across the campus by the student body inviting the university students to participate in the event. However, a complaint was filed by ABVP members before college administration alleging that pro-Afzal Guru event was scheduled to be held by JNUSU, following which JNU administration cancelled its permission for the event.

Despite JNU administration cancelling its permission to allow the event in the campus, the DSU went on to organise the cultural evening at JNU campus.

Govt can't allow Jawaharlal Nehru University to become a hub of anti-national activities: Rijiju

While justifying police action against some JNU students, Rijiju said, “they are not kids who don't know what they do”, adding that in the name of freedom of speech you can't abuse the nation.

Rijiju's statement comes a day after Delhi Police arrested JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar in a case of sedition and criminal conspiracy.

Meanwhile, after receiving an interim report from its disciplinary committee probing the involvement of the students at the event, the JNU debarred eight students from academic activities pending a disciplinary enquiry.

Kumar was arrested two days after JNU witnessed clashes between two student groups over Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, who was hanged on February 09, 2013 in Tihar Jail.

Marking the death anniversary of Guru, a group of students on Tuesday held an event on the campus and shouted slogans against government for hanging him, despite varsity administration having cancelled the permission following a complaint by ABVP members, who termed the activity as "anti-national".

Rahul Gandhi speaking in Hafiz Sayeed's language on JNU row: BJP

BJP claimed the "anti-India" march on JNU campus by a handful of people had invited country-wide condemnation but Congress and other opposition parties were targeting the Modi government due to their "political malice" and vote bank politics.

"Rahul Gandhi and his friends are speaking in the voice LeT terrorist Hafiz Sayeed who had tweeted in support of anti-India event in JNU. It is an insult to our martyrs and armed forces who sacrifice their lives on the border and will boost the morale of anti-national forces.

"JNU has produced many intellectuals and bureaucrats. A handful of people there have given anti-India speeches. Law is taking its course. BJP will urge Congress to not insult our martyrs for political reason," BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma said.

Referring to the recent deaths of army personnel, he said it was unfortunate that while soldiers sacrificed their lives on the border, anti-India slogans were raised and terrorists hailed as martyrs in an institution like JNU.

Reacting to the arrest of the student leader over the controversial JNU event, Gandhi had said, "Modi Govt and & ABVP bullying an institution like JNU simply because it won't toe their line is completely condemnable."

"While Anti-India sentiment is unquestionably unacceptable, the right to dissent & debate is an essential ingredient of democracy," the Congress leader had said.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a tweet had said, "No one supports anti-national forces. But targeting innocent students using that as an excuse will prove very costly to Modi government".

BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said efforts to give "ideological cover" to violence and anti-India activities cannot be allowed.

"The way foul language was used against the Prime Minister...A group of students is trying to damage the dignity of an institution like JNU in the name of cultural agitation," he said.

Against the backdrop of claims made by Pakistani-American terrorist David Headley on Ishrat Jahan, Trivedi slammed the JD(U) for joining opposition parties in raising the JNU issue, saying it had termed her as the "daughter of Bihar".

"At a time when Bihar is being criminalised, JD(U) is joining others on the JNU issue...We won't allow any atrocity on students but at the same time we can't let go anti-nationals," he said.

Sharma accusing Congress of doing politics over terrorism and said the recent comment of a top former IB officer had "exposed" the opposition party. "Even in 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai, Congress had alluded to the involvement of RSS," Sharma said. 

Delhi Police detains 7 JNU students for trying to protest at Indira Gandhi Kala Kendra

The police detained the JNU students and took them to Parliament Street Police Station for questioning.

The arrests have no connection with the event at JNU against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, which has led to huge protests in the campus.

Delhi Police cracked down on a group of protestors at JNU on Friday and arrested a student leader on sedition charges for allegedly raising anti-India slogans during a demonstration in the campus to mark the hanging of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru.

Kumar was arrested two days after JNU witnessed clashes between two student groups over Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, who was hanged on February 09, 2013 in Tihar Jail.

The event was organised by a group of students to protest the 2013 hanging of Guru, an alleged Jaish-e-Mohammed militant, from Kashmir.