Delhi govt gives permission to prosecute Kanhaiya Kumar in sedition case

Kumar is accused of raising anti-India slogans at an event on JNU campus

INDIA-POLITICS-RALLY Kanhaiya Kumar | AFP

The Delhi government has given permission to the police to prosecute former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union (JNUSU) president Kanhaiya Kumar and two others in connection with a sedition case, reports said on Friday. Kumar is accused of raising anti-India slogans inside the campus during an event in 2016.

Delhi Police had filed a charge-sheet against Kumar and nine others, including former JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, on January 14, 2019. Police said the students were leading a procession and had supported the seditious slogans allegedly raised on the campus during an event on February 9, 2016.

The police had also filed a request for permission from the state government to prosecute the accused. Last week, the police again sent a reminder letter to the government after the court's direction.

Earlier, there were reports that the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP government might not give permission to prosecute the JNU students as it thought their activities “do not amount to sedition against the state”.