VK Singh attacks JNUSU president
VK Singh attacks JNUSU president
With threats pouring in, the CPI has approached the Union home ministry for “high-grade” security cover for Jawaharlal Nehru Students’ Union president Kanhaiya Kumar. Besides saffron hawks and Sangh fringe elements threatening Kanhaiya Kumar with dire consequences, Union minister V.K. Singh joined the bandwagon by not merely attacking Mr Kumar but also dragging in Rohith Vemula. Mr Singh’s verbal attack comes at a time when the BJP, cornered over the Rohith Vemula issue, is trying desperately to play it down and divert attention.
Mr Singh attacked Mr Kumar for saying Rohith Vemula was his inspiration and alleged that the dalit scholar had organised a meeting in support of Mumbai blasts convict Yakub Memon.
“I read in newspapers today that a JNU student leader says that he does not draw inspiration from Afzal Guru but Rohith Vemula. I told myself that Rohith Vemula too had organised a meeting for Yakub Memon,” he said, and then added: “Are we with those people who encourage terrorism and who abuse India ” Mr Singh was speaking at a convention of the BJYM, the youth wing of the BJP.
Perturbed over Kanhaiya Kumar’s rise and his speech establishing him as a quality orator, the BJP is swinging from one extreme to another. While the moderate faces in the party chose to ignore him, the hawkish and fringe elements threatened the JNUSU president with dire consequences.
On Saturday the Purvanchali Sena announced it would pay a reward of '11 lakh to anyone who “shoots” Mr Kumar. The outfit has also put up posters in and around the national capital.
On Friday a BJP youth wing leader, Kuldeep Varshney, announced “prize money” of '5 lakh for anyone who “cuts off Kanhaiya’s tongue”. The BJP expelled the leader for six years for making such statements.
Yogi Adityanath, in the race to lead the BJP in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections in 2017, asked Mr Kumar to refrain from using freedom of speech and expression to hail terrorists like Afzal Guru.
Trying to bring some sanity and tone down the fury among party hardliners against the JNUSU president, one of the saffron moderate faces, Mr Siddharth Nath Singh, chose to target Mr Kumar on the ideological front and at the same time dismiss him. “He represents an ideology which is obsolete. He’s a creation of a handful of media. It’s a sheer waste of time discussing him,” he said.
Union home minister Rajnath Singh has assured CPI national secretary D. Raja that Central security agencies would undertake a threat assessment and examine the demand for security cover based on the threat perception. In a letter submitted to the home minister, Mr Raja has claimed that Mr Kumar has been under constant threat since being released on bail and the government should provide him with “high-grade security cover”. Kanhaiya Kumar belongs to the CPI-affiliated AISF.
Also, as requests flood the CPI headquarters for Mr Kanhaiya Kumar to campaign in Kerala and West Bengal, the Communist leadership intends to take a call on “how to use” its latest mascot in the forthcoming polls in these states. “Many things have to be taken into consideration before we agree. He requires security if he goes campaigning in any of the states. We are still examining the demands,” Mr Raja said.
On March 15, Mr Kanhaiya Kumar is expected to participate in a “joint campaign” of student organisations, including NSUI, where the students will take out a march in the capital protesting against the crackdown on students and universities and demanding students not be made targets for political reasons.
