Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said that the event at JNU campus in Delhi commemorating the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru had received “support” from terror outfit leT founder Hafiz Saeed, drawing sharp reaction from the Opposition camp even as the Ministry also backed Rajnath’s claim.
“The incident at JNU has received support from Hafiz Saeed. This is a truth that the nation needs to understand,” Singh told reporters in Allahabad, adding, “What has happened is very unfortunate. Those involved in anti-India activities or propaganda will not be spared and those who are innocent will not be harassed.”
Within hours after the Home Minister’s statement, a MHA spokesperson said Singh had said based on the concrete inputs of security and Intelligence agencies. “Statement of the Home Minister is based on the inputs available from different agencies,” said the spokesperson.
However, the Home Minister’s comments at the Press conference stirred a controversy and invited sharp reaction from left leaders. CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said the Home Minister has to come out and share the evidence he has with the country to back up his “serious allegation”. CPI leader D Raja also demanded that the evidence be made public.
In a series of tweets, Omar Abdullah, former Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir, said the Home Minister must go public with the evidence collected that enabled him to level the charge against the JNU students.
“That #HafizSaeed supported the #JNU protests is a very serious charge to level against the students. The evidence must be shared with all,” he said. “Cracking down on students & using #HafizSaeed to justify the crackdown is a new low, even for this NDA Government.”
Yechury said Rajnath has made a very serious allegation about terrorists ‘backing’ JNU protests, adding. “We hope that he has concrete proof.”
“When we met the Home Minister yesterday, he never mentioned Hafiz Saeed to us but only harped on the slogans being raised at the protests,” said Yechury.
Rajnath’s comments came two days after a series of tweets, purportedly by Saeed, had appeared under a hashtag asking Pakistanis to support the agitation in JNU. On February 12, the Delhi Police had issued an alert based on this tweet to other police agencies across the country.
“This is to alert and sensitise the student community in JNU and across the country. Do not get carried away by such seditious anti-national rhetoric. Abetment of any kind of anti-national activity is a punishable offence,” said the Delhi Police message with Saeed’s Twitter message originated from Pakistan attached.
later in the day, the Home Minister tweeted, “I appeal to all organisations and the political parties to stand united on issues pertaining to unity, sovereignty & integrity of the country.”
“I seek cooperation and support from all political parties & people from all walks of life to join hands in fight against anti-national forces,” he said in a series of tweets. Singh while talking to newspersons also asked political parties not to view protests at JNU through the prism of political gains or losses.
With the entire episode taking a political colour, the students have called for a strike from Monday. The teachers’ association said it is yet to take a call on the issue.
Meanwhile, Delhi Police detained a youth after a group of people tried to vandalise the CPI(M) headquarters at Bhai Veer Singh Marg in New Delhi area on Sunday. Confirming the attack, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said “they tried to write slogans like ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ at our office board.
While the CPI(M) said the attackers were RSS-BJP workers who also hurled stones, the police said the detainee claimed to be member of an outfit called the ‘Aam Aadmi Sena’. “Three youths came to the office of CPI(M) where they sprayed black ink on the wall of the office building. While, two of them managed to flee, one was held by CPI(M) workers and handed over to police,” said Jatin Narwal, DCP, New Delhi.
“The youth, identified as Sushant Khosla, told police that he is a member of the Aam Aadmi Sena. We have initiated legal action in connection with the matter and investigation has been taken up,” he added.
In a related incident, a case has been registered in connection with an alleged attack on senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on the JNU campus, with the police on Sunday saying that they are trying to ascertain the identity of the alleged assailants.
The FIR has been registered under Sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 341 (wrongful restraint) of IPC against several unnamed persons, a senior police official said. The FIR was registered on the basis of a complaint by Sharma’s Personal Security Officer (PSO), following which senior-most police officials of the district went to meet the former Union Minister at his residence.
Not be left behind, the RSS on Sunday made a veiled attack on the Congress and the left over their stand on the JNU row, saying some political leaders are “condoning anti-national acts instead of demanding action against them”.
RSS spokesperson Manmohan Vaidya also termed as “serious” what he claimed were students engaging in “anti-India activities” on the campus of a central university and some teachers supporting them.
Meanwhile, a video allegedly showing ABVP members shouting pro-Pakistan slogans is going viral. The ABVP, however, has rubbished the allegations saying the video was “morphed” to tarnish their image. The students’ wing has lodged a criminal complaint with the police to investigate the veracity of the tape.
The 1 minute 32 second video titled ‘The Conspiracy’, uploaded on social media shows four students, allegedly belonging to ABVP, the student’s wing of RSS, shouting ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans.
Students from the left-wing groups alleged that members of the ABVP had shouted anti-national slogans prompting the crowd which was a mixed bunch of different student groups and even outsiders to follow suit.
“They were the ones who shouted those slogans disrupting a meeting which was peacefully debating the issue. We do not even know who said what and they easily demonised every student as anti-national,” said a student who belongs to left-backed All India Students Association (AISA).
JNU Students Union Joint Secretary, Saurabh Kumar Sharma, who is the only ABVP member among office-bearers, said, “These are all tactics to tarnish our image and attack us as we have objected to their anti-national activities. The video has been morphed only to defame us and spread false information”.
Meanwhile, seven of eight JNU students who were debarred from academic activities earlier this week in connection with a controversial event held on the campus, have been asked to appear before a high level committee of the varsity probing the matter. “Seven students have been sent notices to appear before the university’s high level committee probing the matter. Eight students including Kanhaiya have been debarred from any academic activity till the inquiry is over,” JNU registrar Bhupinder Zutshi said.
CPI leader D Raja on Sunday defended his AISF leader-daughter, whose name figures in the list of JNU students accused of raising anti-India slogans, and hit out at political rivals for making “irrational and baseless” allegations in this regard. The CPI national secretary also dismissed charges that Opposition parties are seeking political gain out of the situation at JNU and claimed the left Front-Congress are “extremely concerned” over the developments at the varsity and fighting to protect its interest.