Umar, Anirban, 7 Kashmiri students from JNU, Jamia, AMU also named
The Delhi Police on Monday filed 1,200 pages chargesheet against former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) president Kanhaiya Kumar and others in a sedition case.
The February 9, 2016 case pertains to allegations that anti-national slogans were raised at an event organised by Kanhaiya, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya on Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus to commemorate the hanging of Parliament-attack mastermind Afzal Guru.
The chargesheet has 10 main accused people — Kanhaiya, Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya and seven Kashmiri students studying with Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) and JNU and identified as Aquib Hussain, Mujeeb Hussain, Muneeb Hussain, Umar Gul, Rayeea Rasool, Bashir Bhat and Basharat.
As many as 36 others, including Communist Party of India (CPI) leader D Raja’s daughter Aprajita, Shehla Rashid (then vice-president JNUSU), Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Banojyotsna Lahiri, all former students of JNU, have been named in column 12 of the chargesheet due to insufficient evidence against them.
Police have alleged that Kanhaiya had incited the mob to shout anti-India slogans. Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Anand put up the charge sheet for consideration before a competent court on Tuesday.
The accused have been charged with offences under sections 124A (sedition), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 465 (punishment for forgery), 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record), 143 (punishment for being a member of an unlawful assembly), 149 (being a member of an unlawful assembly), 147 (punishment for rioting) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
In the charge sheet, police claimed that all the footage were genuine and the presence of students belonging to Kashmir was also establish through mobile clips and videos.
It claimed that Kashmiri students had masks on during the procession, but did not cover their faces while returning. This showed their involvement, police said.
Ten accused people have been chargesheeted on the basis of electronic evidence, including CCTV footage and mobile footage, and documentary evidence, which include statements of students and security guards.
The final report claims that no permission was granted to organise the event and every member was a part of an unlawful assembly.
When informed about the lack of permission to hold the event, the accused started arguing and fighting, it said.
A case was registered on February 11, 2016 under sections 124A and 120B of the IPC against unidentified persons at the Vasant Kunj (North) police station, following complaints from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Maheish Girri and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). The event in 2016 had taken place despite the university administration cancelling the permission, following a complaint from the ABVP, which had termed it as “anti-national.
“Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Anand had put up the charge sheet for consideration before a court on Tuesday. The police alleged that Kanhaiya was inciting, being part of the mob shouting anti-India slogans. Reacting to the development, Kanhaiya said it was a diversionary ploy by the Modi Government to hide its all-round failures.
“I have not received any summons or information from the court. But if it is true, then we are thankful to police and Modi that finally after 3 years, when it is time is for him and his Government to go, the chargesheet has been filed,” said Kanhaiya.
While, accusing BJP led Union Government of using issue to derive political mileage, Shehla Rashid tweeted, “The Modi Government has used this manufactured controversy in installments. The next installment would be on the nomination day for 2019 elections.”