Charged with sedition, Kanhaiya Kumar says thank you Modiji, the timing is pertinent

The Delhi police on Monday filed a chargesheet against former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) president Kanhaiya Kumar and others for allegedly holding an ‘anti-national’ event at Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi in February 2016. Instead of the usual three months, the chargesheet has been filed three years after the incident.

It is the timing of the chargesheet filing – three months before the Lok Sabha elections – that is now being questioned.

The police have also accused former JNU student leaders Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya in connection with the same alleged ‘anti-national’ event organized in the JNU campus against the hanging of Parliament-attack mastermind Afzal Guru during which alleged “anti-national slogans” were raised. According to police, other than these three, there are evidences against seven students from Jammu and Kashmir — Aquib Hussain, Mujeeb Hussain, Muneeb Hussain, Umar Gul, Rayeea Rassol, Bashir Bhat and Basharat.

While police say that it took so long to file the chargesheet in order to gather evidences, Kanhaiya Kumar reacted to the 1200 pages-long charge sheet saying that it is politically motivated because it was filed just months before the elections. He is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from Bihar’s Begusarai, and it is being argued from various quarters that the chargesheet has been deliberately filed around this time to prevent him from contesting the elections and to scuttle the powerful voice. Kanhaiya Kumar thanked the police and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and added that he trusted the judiciary.

“I have not received summons or information from the court. We also feel that the truth must come out. We too want to see the videos that have been placed on record as evidences. What is pertinent is the timing — just ahead of the Lok Sabha polls,” Kanhaiya Kumar said while speaking to the media.

Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya also echoed the same thoughts saying that they have full faith in the court of law and that they will prove their innocence.