In an unprecedented show of solidarity, thousands of students along with scholars, academics and the intelligentsia on Thursday hit the streets of New Delhi decrying the arrest of JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar over charges of sedition and demanding his immediate release.
Stepping up their agitation against arrest of Jawaharlal Nehru University students union president Kanhaiya Kumar and two others in a sedition case, the students will march to Parliament on Wednesday demanding the release of those jailed in the case.
"If such blurring gains traction, democracy would be in peril," a bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Anup Jairam Bhambhani said in its 83-page judgement while deliberating with the case and imposition of anti-terror law against Kalita.
A wise politician would disarm his critics, try to take them along, co-opt them, or, at least, take the criticism in his stride. Developing a thick skin ought to be an essential part of any politician's toolkit, notes Virendra Kapoor.
Over 300 eminent personalities from the creative and scholarly community of India, including actor Naseeruddin Shah, filmmaker Mira Nair, vocalist TM Krishna, author Amitav Ghosh and historian Romila Thapar have expressed solidarity with the students and others protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens. Writers Anita Desai, Kiran Desai, actors Ratna Patak Shah, Jaaved Jafferi, Nandita Das, Lillete Dubey, sociologist Ashis Nandy, activists Sohail Hashmi and Shabnam Hashmi were also among the signatories.
'Section 153A is not meant to protect fragile sentiments of the majority Hindu community who choose to get offended by slogans celebrating the success of the Pakistani cricket team.'
Several protests -- some peaceful, some violent -- erupted across India on Monday against the police crackdown in Jamia Millia Islamia and the controversial citizenship law as students and political leaders took to the streets, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi called these protests "deeply distressing" and appealed for peace.
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The plea has sought the apex court directions to the authorities to open the roads at Delhi borders, shift these protestors to allotted place and provide guidelines on social distancing and use of mask at the protest place to contain spread of COVID-19 cases.
Police suspects that the packet must have been sent before Kumar's visit to Pune on April 24, when Pathrabe was the director of FTII.
The President asked, "Is tolerance and acceptance of dissent on the wane?"
'He (Khalid) can't be made to incarcerate in jail for infinity merely on account that others who were part of the mob have to be identified and arrested in the matter'
The chargesheet in which 15 persons have been named as being part of a 'premeditated conspiracy' in the north east Delhi riots, said the tone and nature of the communication of the members of Jamia Co-ordination Committee (JCC) changed from the evening of February 24 and they started talking about relief, rehabilitation and care of the victims while 'simultaneously unleashing concerted disinformation campaign blaming the state, police and the ruling political party for the loss of lives and property caused by their terrorist and unlawful act'.
A retired Pakistan army officer incurs army chief General Bajwa's wrath, reveals Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at the Research and Analysis Wing, India's external intelligence agency.
'After Father Stan Swamy's death one thing has become very clear, that if you fight for justice in India you will be called a Maoist by the State.'
The anti-CAA protest was an ugly rant more consistent with the violent chaos of anarchy, argues Vivek Gumaste.
The court said that even if there was no direct act of violence attributable to the accused (Zargar), she cannot shy away from her liability under the provisions of the UAPA.
The march was its attempt to retaliate against All India Students' Association and assorted Left-inclined groups, which had put up a massive anti-ABVP show on February 28, by projecting alleged violence "perpetrated" by Communists in the country.
The new Gujarat chief minister's no-nonsense attitude and being a tough taskmaster might rub the people up the wrong way, making things difficult for her, observes Arvind J Bosmia.
In a stinging letter, the three wrote, 'We cannot be mouthpiece of such a government which has unleashed oppression on student community'.
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"If slogans are raised on reputed campuses for fragmenting India, resolutions are made to destroy it, and if Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru is hailed as a martyr, it is shameful and disconcerting," an appeal which has the consent of 33 individuals, including intellectuals and artistes, says.
A day after masked goons entered Jawaharlal Nehru University and ran riot, injuring over 36 people with sticks, lathis and hammers, noted economist and professor C P Chandrasekhar resigned from a Narendra Modi government-appointed committee on statistics. The committee was set to hold its first meeting to review India's economic data. In his resignation letter, Professor Chandrasekhar wrote, "I regret to inform you that because of the situation in JNU where I stay, I will be unable to attend tomorrow's meeting." He was also quoted as saying, "The JNU's incident on Sunday has further undermined the faith in the system. It shows that we are now living in a different world and it's hard to work with a government in which you have lost faith."
Defying prohibitory orders, protests were held in Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and several other cities. Protesters, mostly students and activists, were detained on a large scale in national capital and other places.
Coming out in support of SAR Gilani, a Delhi university teachers body has demanded that the professor be released and said the "colonial" sedition law under which he has been charged was being "misused to supress dissent" and should be scrapped.
Taking a dig at ruling the BJP over its stand on the Jawaharlal Nehru University row, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Sunday said that nationalism is now decided by whether one can say 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' or not.
Delivering the 66th convocation address at the Panjab University, the vice president said a university should never seek to silence or influence faculty members or students to adopt or renounce any particular position.
'In May 2020-2021, nearly 10 crores (100 million) lost jobs. 'Covid is not the reason for the present crisis. It aggravated the crisis.'
'One does not understand why you should launch your attack against the Constitution, against Gandhiji, against the Left and Congress regimes at a moment when the Hindutva regime needs such attacks against them.' 'By doing so, don't you think you are playing into the hands of Hindutva forces?', Mohammad Sajjad, who teaches history at Aligarh Muslim University, asks Sharjeel Imam who was arrested on charges of sedition on Tuesday, January 28.
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Soundararajan is heard telling the student and the people who gathered at the lounge that a plane was no place to raise slogans.
Afzal Guru's lawyer Nandita Haksar on Thursday said that the law of sedition is "loosely" defined in the Indian constitution and its interpretation depends on who is in power.
'There is perhaps a need to pay heed to L K Advani's belief about an Emergency re-run,' says Amulya Ganguli.
Amid dramatic scenes and vociferous demonstrations by the Film and Television Institute of India students, television actor and Bharatiya Janata Party member Gajendra Chauhan on Thursday took charge as chairman of the premiere institute in Pune, even as police detained nearly 40 protesters who were calling him a "political appointee".
An FTII students' body representative said they will not sacrifice academics anymore for a government that is "deaf and a bully".
'Potent nationalism doesn't just distract from the economic task at hand; it actively undermines it.'
"We want to live in an environment where we love our fellow men. We don't shoot them, we don't kill them. We don't hold them hostages but give a bit of ourselves and we give and take," Tata added.
JNU student union president Kanhaiya Kumar came under strong criticism for his remarks that 1984 anti-Sikh riot was a "mob-led massacre" while 2002 Gujarat riots were a "state sponsored violence."
The BJP claimed the Congress was targeting the Modi government due to their "political malice" and vote bank politics.
