ABVP demands expulsion of JNU students over Anti-national event

February 10, 2016

New Delhi

Members of ABVP today staged a protest at JNU demanding expulsion of students who went ahead with a protest march on the campus against hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, despite withdrawal of permission by university authorities.

JNU students’ union joint secretary Saurabh Kumar, who is the only ABVP member in the union, said, “How can an event on Afzal Guru, who attacked the temple of democracy, be organised here. We are demanding expulsion of those who organised it.”

The university authorities had cancelled the protest march yesterday “fearing” that it might “disrupt” peace on the campus.

However, the organisers later claimed they went ahead with the programme despite the cancellation of the permission and held a cultural programme, art and photo exhibition on the issue rather than a protest.

Members of ABVP, RSS associated students outfit, gathered outside the VC office and shouted slogans terming yesterday’s event by a group of students as “anti national” and demanding their “expulsion” from the university.

JNU students’ union joint secretary Saurabh Kumar, who is the only ABVP member in the union, said, “How can an event on Afzal Guru, who attacked the temple of democracy, be held here? We are demanding expulsion of those who organised it”.

“This was an anti national event. When we tried to stop them from holding a march, I was shown a gun. They raised anti-India slogans and for freedom of Kashmir,” he alleged.

However, this is not the first time that JNU students have organised an event on death anniversary of Afzal Guru.

The varsity registrar said, “if once a “wrong” thing has happened does not mean it has to happen again and again. We had denied the permission earlier too and those who were found “defying instructions” by the probe committee were penalised.

The decision of ordering an enquiry was taken by the VC after he met the agitating students.

“The VC has told us that an enquiry has been ordered and based on the report action will be taken. But we will approach the HRD ministry as well as the Home Ministry demanding that the students who contributed to this “anti-national” activity be expelled,” said Alok Singh, President of ABVP’s JNU unit.

The organizers alleged ABVP terms everything controversial and against their own ideology as anti-national.

“This is a set pattern where we get permission but then ABVP comes right on the day of programme and administration cancels it last moment. Even screening of movies on controversial issues are considered anti-national,” said Anirban Bhattacharya, one of the organizers.

Meanwhile, police officials said that a complaint in this regard has been received from the agitating students and the matter is being looked into.

The members of ABVP also released a purported video of yesterday’s event showing the organsiers shouting slogans calling Guru a “martyr” and clashing with the protesters, which the varsity authorities said will be examined by the committee.

Other members of JNU students union which belong to left-backed organisations, “disowned” the protest against the event saying it is ABVP’s stand and not that of JNUSU.

JNU administration today ordered a “disciplinary” inquiry into the holding of an event on campus against the hanging of Guru despite cancellation of permission for the same as the university was rocked by demonstrations by ABVP members demanding expulsion of the organisers of the protest.

Maintaining that the act by students amounted to “indiscipline” and any talk about the disintegration of the nation cannot be “national”, the university authorities said that the matter will be investigated by a committee headed by the Chief Proctor of JNU.

ABVP demands expulsion of JNU students over Anti-national event

ABVP demands expulsion of JNU students over Anti-national event

With inputs from PTI

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