The case relates to a February 2016 event that was organised in Jawaharlal Nehru University on the death anniversary of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru
Team Clarion
NEW DELHI —A Delhi court on Monday issued summons against former students leaders Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and eight others in the 2016 JNU sedition case to appear before the judge on March 15.
The court took cognizance of the chargesheet filed by Delhi Police in the case a year after receiving sanction from the Home Department.
Kumar and others were booked on charges of sedition in February 2016 after an event was organised in Jawaharlal Nehru University on the death anniversary of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. The chargesheet, according to reports, alleges that Kumar led a procession that raised “seditious slogans” at the campus on February 9, 2016.
Apart from Kumar and Khalid, the chargesheet names Anirban Bhattacharya and Kashmiri students Aquib Hussain, Mujeeb Hussain Gattoo, Muneeb Hussain Gattoo, Umar Gul, Rayees Rasool, Basharat Ali and Khalid Bashir Bhatt.
The 1,200-page chargesheet states that the Regional Forensic Science Laboratory (RFSL) retrieved the SMS sent by Umar Khalid to Kanhaiya Kumar to arrive at Sabarmati Dhaba, JNU, as their permission (to hold the protest) had been cancelled by the university administration.
“The sanction to prosecute accused persons has already been filed by the Home Department, GNCT [Delhi government], dated February 27, 2020. After careful perusal of the chargesheet and consideration of the material, all the accused persons are summoned to face trial and they have been summoned through investigation officer for March 15, 2021.” Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (Patiala House Courts) Dr Pankaj Sharma was quoted in Indian Express as saying.
Notably, Khalid is already behind bars under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in connection with the Delhi riots conspiracy case that has been filed against activists who led last year’s mammoth protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
The delay in prosecution sanction is said to have come due to disagreement between the Centre and the AAP-led Delhi government which was reluctant to give the nod.
Eventually on February 27 last year the AAP government passed the order clearing the way for Delhi Police, which comes under the Union Home Ministry, to prosecute the accused under sedition charges.
The summons in the high profile case come at a time when there is already a public uproar against the government for stifling dissent by going after rights activists and journalists.
