The JNU vice-chancellor, Prof. M.
The JNU vice-chancellor, Prof. M. Jagadesh Kumar, on Wednesday extended by two days the period for the submission of replies to the show-cause notices issued to 21 students after the high-level inquiry committee submitted its report on the controversial February 9 event in the varsity.
“The vice-chancellor has granted an extension for submission of replies till March 18 to the students who were issued the show-cause notices,” a senior university officer said. The deadline originally has been till 5 pm on Wednesday.
Union parliamentary affairs minister M. Venkaiah Naidu in Parliament on Wednesday again described the JNU incident as an “anti-national activity.”
“The JNU incident raised some serious issues. Universities, the highest seats of learning, are supposed to be the breeding grounds for reason, responsibility and maturity instead of pioneering anti-national activities. This message has effectively gone out in the public domain as a result of some Opposition parties seeking to make a political capital out of it,” said the minister.
He said what was happening in JNU was “inspired by a particular ideology, ultra-Left and separatist forces... is definitely an anti-national activity. Government cannot allow such thing. All these things are in public domain. Some people have a fancy. They have become zeroes. So they want to make heroes. All parties are thoroughly exposed.”
Meanwhile, a Delhi court reserved its order on the bail pleas of JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya for March 18. The Delhi police however, opposed the bail on the ground that allegations against the two students were grave as they were the main organisers of the controversial event.
The students, who have been in jail since February 23, sought bail on the grounds of parity with Mr Kumar, who has already been granted bail. Their judicial custody was extended by the court till March 29 on Tuesday.
Also, Justice Pratibha Rani, who was hearing three petitions for cancellation of interim bail of JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, referred it to the Delhi high court Chief Justice G. Rohini for allocating to another bench after one of the petitioners objected to her warning that they may have to bear the costs in case of dismissal of their pleas.
“Be ready. If I will dismiss the pleas, I might dismiss it with cost. That is why I asked if the petitioners are here or not,” the judge said. However, advocate R.P. Luthra, who appeared for petitioner Prashant Kumar Umrao, objected and said the court cannot “intimidate” them like this as “this is our right and it cannot be taken away.”
Another petitioner, Vineet Jindal also made the identical plea but his counsel said he has no such objection.
“Let the petitions be transferred before the Chief Justice on Thursday for listing it before another bench,” Justice Pratibha Rani said.
On Tuesday, the high court had refused to entertain another plea seeking action against Mr Kumar for allegedly making anti-national remarks in his speech.
