Slogans in favour of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru were raised in a rally brought out by Jadavpur University students in Kolkata on Tuesday to express solidarity with their JNU counterparts agitating against the arrest of their leader Kanhaiya Kumar for alleged sedition.
During the torch rally brought from JU campus to Gol Park in South Kolkata by students of all faculties of the university, slogans like "Afzal bole azadi, Geelani bole azadi" and "Chhinke lenge azadi" were raised.
Other slogans like "Freedom from RSS, freedom from Modi government", "Jab Kashmir ne maangi azadi, Manipur bhi boli azadi" were also raised.
When contacted, SFI local committee secretary Samanya Raha, who took part in the rally, said it was a "mass gathering" to protest against the arrest of Kanhaiya Kumar on the charge of sedition.
Members of the DSO, the students wing of SUCI, take out a protest rally, condemning the arrest of JNUSU leader Kanhaiya Kumar in Kolkata on Tuesday. PTI Photo by Swapan Mahapatra
One of the students Nirjhar Mukhopadhyay, who shouted the slogans, later clarified that he did not mean Kashmir and Manipur want freedom.
"We love India...........but want freedom from the excesses by Modi government," he said.
Freedom means everyone should be treated equally, Mukhopadhyay added.
Asked about pro-Afzal slogan, he claimed that the person who raised that particular slogan was "a fringe element" and does not represent majority of the students.
"I condemn this and I don't support Afzal Guru. We don't want to raise pro-Afzal slogans," Mukhopadhyay added.