Jawaharlal Nehru University Protests Influence Students From Other Universities
The government arrest of a left-wing student leader on sedition charges is triggering large nationwide student-led protests across India's collegiate institutions which pits the militant student against PM Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist-oriented Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Kanhaiya Kumar, a left-leaning student leader who denounced the execution of Kashmiri separatist Afzal Guru, was accused by BJP members of espousing anti-India sentiment.
The JNU student leader was detained for allegedly leading commemorative protests against Afzal Guru's execution in 2003 for attacking the Indian parliament in 2001 in a report by the International Business Times.
As student-police confrontation heightens in New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), students skipped their classes to join the protests that is spreading to nearly 20 universities and colleges across India.
"The government does not want students to have a say. Federation, a leftwing It wants to dictate what students think, understand and say," remarked Rahila Parween the Delhi unit of the All India Students' as quoted by Gulf Times.
However, a BJP-linked student group slams left-wing students' union for its anti-India comments.
"You cannot be an Indian if you celebrate the death anniversary of a terrorist," said Saurabh Sharma, the nationalistic student group Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad according to a Business Insider report.
The protests came as BJP-led parliamentary leaders released strong-worded statements on the recent student protests against what the government perceives as anti-national activities in campuses.
"Nation is watching, and in coming days India won't tolerate such anti-national elements. If anti-national activities happen in Universities then Govt needs to look into what strict measures need to be taken," said BJP MP Mahesh Giri as stated in Zee News report.
