JNU students to approach PMO, NHRC over handling of Afzal Guru row

New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru University Student's Union (JNUSU) is planning to approach the Prime Minister's Office, Union Home Minister and National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), raising their concerns about the way the government has been dealing with recent controversy in the university.

Students are also organising a day long sit-in dharna in front of the administration block in JNU demanding the removal of the Registrar Bhupinder Zutshi, who, the students allege did not handle the February 9 matter well.

They will also march to Parliament on March 2, to highlight their concerns about the 'stifling of dissent in JNU, Hyderabad Central University and elsewhere through sedition charges'.

Students alleged that HRD Minister Smriti Irani's speech in Parliament where she pronounced eight students as "guilty", is also based on a "half-cooked" report.

"The HRD Minister has quoted an internal and 'interim' report of a 'High Level Enquiry Committee' in JNU to name eight students as prima-facie 'guilty'. JNU students and teachers have repeatedly pointed out that this interim report of the committee, prepared within 24 hours of its formation, violated all norms of natural justice and due diligence," said Shehla Rashid Shora, vice president JNU student's union.

"We would like to ask the MHA and the MHRD, if they knew that JNU had instituted an internal enquiry, why did they send in the Delhi Police to arrest students? Why did they mess with JNU's institutional autonomy?," she asked.

The students union further said, "we want to take up all these issue with the PMO, MHRD and the Home Minister. We will also be approaching the NHRC and the Minority Commission to register our concerns at the functioning of the Delhi Police and the continuing threats of physical violence against Kanhaiya, Umar and Anirban".

"The administration has called for an emergency Executive Council meeting on February 29. JNUSU will present a memorandum to each EC member demanding that the suspension of the eight students be unconditionally revoked. We are also demanding that Vice Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar should take action against the Registrar for misguiding him in the handling of the issue," Shehla added.

Meanwhile, a group of students from Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students' Association (BAPSA) burnt the effigy of Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh in protest against the alleged acid attack on AAP leader Soni Sori.