Afzal event had Hafiz Saeed’s ''support'', says Rajnath; share proof, demands Oppn

Allahabad/Srinagar, February 14

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday claimed that the event on the JNU campus in Delhi commemorating the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru had received “support” from LeT chief Hafiz Saeed, a statement that sparked a political row with Opposition parties asking him to provide evidence.

As Singh said the truth that the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) event received support from Saeed, who is the chief of Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), needed to be understood by the nation, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah said it is a “very serious charge” to level against the students and that the evidence must be shared with all.

“The incident (Afzal event) at JNU has received support from Hafiz Saeed. This is a truth that the nation needs to understand,” Singh told reporters in Allahabad, adding, “What has happened is very unfortunate.”

CPI-M General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said the Home Minister has to come out and share the evidence he has with the country to back up his “serious allegation”. CPI leader D. Raja also demanded that the evidence be made public.

Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said the Home Minister has made a serious charge and he should produce evidence.

Rajnath’s comments came two days after a series of tweets, purportedly by Saeed, had appeared under a hashtag asking Pakistanis to support the agitation at JNU.

The police are investigating as to whether the twitter handle actually belonged to the LeT founder.

Later, Delhi Police had issued an alert through the official twitter handle of the Commissioner’s office, saying, “This is to alert and sensitise the student community in JNU and across the country. Do not get carried away by such seditious anti-national rhetoric. Abetment of any kind of anti-national activity is a punishable offence.”

In the alert, Delhi Police had also pinned a tweet by the handle named HafeezSaeedJUD which says, “We request our Pakistani brothers to trend #SupportJNU for our pro-Pakistani JNUite brothers.”

In a series of tweets, Omar, a former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, said the Home Minister must go public with the evidence collected that enabled him to level the charge against the JNU students.

“That #HafizSaeed supported the #JNU protests is a very serious charge to level against the students. The evidence must be shared with all,” he said. “Cracking down on students & using #HafizSaeed to justify the crack down is a new low, even for this NDA government.”

Yechury said Rajnath has made a very serious allegation about terrorists ‘backing’ JNU protests, adding. “We hope that he has concrete proof.”

“Considering the gravity of the charge made by no less than the Union Home Minister, we would like him to share the evidence with the country,” he added. “When we met the Home Minister yesterday, he never mentioned Hafiz Saeed to us but only harped on the slogans being raised at the protests.

Later in the day, Singh tweeted, “I appeal to all organisations and the political parties to stand united on issues pertaining to unity, sovereignty &integrity of the country. Those involved in anti-India activities or propaganda will not be spared and those who are innocent will not be harassed.”

“I seek cooperation and support from all political parties &people from all walks of life to join hands in fight against anti-national forces,” he said in a series of tweets.

Singh while talking to newspersons also asked political parties not to view protests at JNU through the prism of political gains or losses.

In a shot in the arm for the students demanding the release of its students’ union president Kanhaiya Kumar, who was slapped with sedition charge, teachers’ associations of 40 Central universities extended support to the protest by the students and teachers of the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University(JNU)

JNU’s teachers’ association also openly came out against the administration for mishandling the matter and particularly slammed it for allowing police action before completion of a probe by the university’s proctorial committee in connection with the event. The teachers are backing the students.

Seven of eight JNU students, who were debarred from academic activities earlier this week in connection with the Afzal Guru event, have been asked to appear before a high-level committee of the university probing the matter.

Meanwhile, a video has gone viral on the social media, purportedly showing ABVP members shouting pro-Pakistan slogans. However, the ABVP, the students’ wing of the BJP, rubbished the allegations, saying it is a morphed video.

The police have formed a team to trace 13 students allegedly involved in anti-India sloganeering at the event on February 9. DCP South Delhi, Prem Nath, has also written a letter to the top brass favouring transfer of the case to Delhi Police’s Special Cell.

While the students have called for a strike from tomorrow till Kanhaiya is released, the teachers’ association said it is yet to take a call on the issue.

Kanhaiya was arrested on Friday in connection with a case of sedition and criminal conspiracy registered over holding of the event at the varsity during which anti-India slogans were alleged to have been raised.

A shocked mother of Kanhaiya, who hails from Begusarai in Bihar, said “Please do not call my son a terrorist.

“We are constantly watching TV after we got to know that Kanhaiya has been arrested. I hope police does not beat him too much. He has never disrespected his parents, forget the country. Please do not call my son a terrorist. He cannot be one.”

Meena Devi, an Anganwadi worker who earns Rs 3,500 per month, said she and her eldest son Manikant are the sole bread-winners for the family as her 65-year-old husband has been bedridden for seven years due to paralysis.

JNU Vice-Chancellor Jagdish Kumar appealed to the students and teachers to let the law take its course and maintain a conducive environment in the university. — PTI