Posters in JU demand 'freedom' for Kashmir, Manipur, Nagaland

Kolkata, Feb 17: A day after pro-Afzal Guru slogans were raised in Jadavpur University (JU), posters demanding 'freedom' for Kashmir, Manipur and Nagaland were found in the campus.

"Hum kya chahe - Azadi. Kashmir ki Azadi. Manipur ki Azadi. Nagaland ki Azadi (We demand freedom. Kashmir's freedom. Manipur's freedom. Nagaland's freedom)," one of the posters said.

All such posters were signed by a group called 'RADICAL'. Both the student unions and authorities have distanced themselves from such posters.

"These are some fringe elements. I met the students union leaders in the morning and they told me that they disassociate themselves with all anti-national slogans," Vice Chancellor Suranjan Das said.

Slogans in favour of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru were raised at a rally on Monday taken out by JU students to express solidarity with JNU students protesting the arrest of their leader Kanhaiya Kumar for alleged sedition.

Das said he saw some student union leaders also walking in the rally yesterday in which pro-Afzal slogans were raised.

"As a Vice Chancellor, it is my responsibility to see that the students get their right to protest, their freedom of speech and expression is protected," he said.

On whether the university would make any police complaint on this issue, he said the question did not arise. "In university, the police has no role. I will never call police in the campus," Das said.

Students' union Forum of Art Students leader Sounak Mukherjee said the majority view of the students was not reflected in the posters. "We are against it," he said.

In the meantime, two opposing groups of students brought out rallies in the campus. The smaller group shouted slogans of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' and voiced their concerns against yesterday's torch rally.

They shouted slogans against eulogising Afzal. As a counter to this, other students also brought out a rally. JNU students union president Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested on sedition charges for allegedly raising anti-national slogans in the university campus recently.

The arrest sparked massive outrage among students and criticism from non-BJP parties.

PTI