Tensions build by the day at the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus in Delhi, where JNU Student Union leader Kanhaiya Kumar has been arrested under sedition charges for allowing slogans protesting Afzal Guru's judicial hanging and making “anti-national” statements.
We spoke to CPI Member of Parliament D Raja, whose daughter Aparajita has been actively involved in the protests as the leader of AISF, the CPI student wing in the University. BJP Leader Mahesh Giri posted a screengrab of a protest video showing Aparajita, and alleged that she was raising anti-India slogans.
“The JNU students are doing nothing wrong, and who are these parties to deem them national or anti-national?,” D Raja said, vehemently opposing the action by ABVP protestors. “I am very proud of my daughter, not just as a parent, but as a citizen of this country who upholds democratic values. She is the nationalist.”
Raja has received many anonymous threats over phone pressurising him to take the BJP's side and asking him “why he was fighting the ruling government.” He told The News Minute that his daughter was also threatened that she would be shot down. “When I told Rajnath Singhji about it, he asked me to file a formal complaint,” but he has not said anything about an end to the protests,” he said.
On speculation that the Delhi Police is likely to arrest 10 JNU students involved in the protests including his daughter, he said, “Nothing has been clear yet, but if they take an action like that, we will see what we have to do.”
Home Minister Rajnath Singh has criticised the sloganeering by a group in the University and ABVP members and protesters have reportedly been clashing with each other since. Following this, many leaders including Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, leaders Ajay Maken and Anand Sharma, Left leaders Sitaram Yechury, D Raja and JD(U) Leader KC Tyagi visited the campus expressing solidarity with the JNU students. Leaders agreed that Kumar had not raised "anti-India" slogans and he had done "nothing wrong" by criticising RSS, BJP and HRD minister Smriti Irani.