JNU inquiry committee recommends rustication of students

Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University’s (JNU) high-level inquiry committee has recommended the rustication of its two students. Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya will be rusticated for particular period, according to the report submitted by the committee about February 9 incident on the campus. Some students, including JNU Student Union present Kanhaiya Kumar, have to pay fine for violating the code of conduct of the university.

The office of the Chief Proctor will take the final decision about the students who were present at the February 9 event. The Delhi Police arrested Mr. Bhattacharya, Mr. Khalid and Mr. Kumar under sedition charges. The arrests were made because allegedly they raised slogan against the hangings of Afzal Guru, a convict in the 2002 parliament attack. Khalid and Bhattacharya remain in the judicial custody now while the Kumar was released on bail.

For violating the rules and regulations of university, around 21 students have received show cause notices from the administration. The students have refused to accept the notice. Anant, one of the students, dismissed the charges and said that how the inquiry committee can reach to any conclusion without hearing students’ side. March 16 is the deadline to submit their replies to the Chief Proctor’s office. If there is no submission, the office will assume that students do not have anything to say in their defense.

The inquiry committee submitted its report on March 11 during the meeting where Vice Chancellor M. Jagadesh Kumar was present. The suspension of Kanhaiya Kumar along with eight other students was revoked by the university after they were charged for sedition for participating in the protest against the hanging of Afzal Guru. The university later informed that this was not a clean chit but the decision will be taken after examination. Now the JNU will implement the recommendation of rustication given by inquiry committee.