Chidambaram slams AAP for sanction to prosecute Kanhaiya Kumar in 2016 sedition case
New Delhi, Feb 29: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Saturday slammed the AAP government in Delhi for giving a nod to the police officials to prosecute former JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar and nine others in 2016 sedition case.
Taking to Twitter, Chidambaram said, "Delhi Government is no less ill-informed than the central government in its understanding of sedition law. I strongly disapprove of the sanction granted to prosecute Mr Kanhaiya Kumar and others for alleged offences under sections 124A and 120B of IPC."
Delhi Government is no less ill-informed than the central government in its understanding of sedition law.
— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) February 29, 2020
I strongly disapprove of the sanction granted to prosecute Mr Kanhaiya Kumar and others for alleged offences under sections 124A and 120B of IPC.
In 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress, in its manifesto pledged to scrap the sedition law by claiming that it has been "misused and, in any event, become redundant".
Delhi govt gives nod to prosecute Kanhaiya Kumar in sedition case
Earlier, the BJP claimed had claimed that it was public pressure that forced the government of Delhi to grant sanction to prosecute Kanhaiya Kumar and nine others in the sedition case.
In a tweet, Union minister Prakash Javadekar said, "Under public pressure, finally the Delhi government was forced to give permission in the JNU case. For three years, Arvind Kejriwal kept postponing it but he was forced to bend in front of people."
लोगो के दबाव के कारण आखिर दिल्ली सरकार @AamAadmiParty को #JNU मामले में मुकदमा चलाने की अनुमति देनी पड़ी। 3 साल दिल्ली के मुख्यमंत्री @ArvindKejriwal यह अनुमति टालते रहे लेकिन आखिर उन्हें जनता के आगे झुकना पड़ा। @BJP4India @AmitShah @JPNadda
— Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) February 28, 2020
In January 2019, the Delhi Police said that Kanhaiya and others, including former JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya led a protest march on February 9, 2016 to commemorate the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru cession and had supported seditious slogans allegedly raised in the JNU campus that day.
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On February 12, 2016, Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested and was released from jail on March 3 that year.