On Thursday the Delhi’s Patiala House court is scheduled to hear Jawaharlal Nehru University Sedition case, in which the Delhi police special Cell had submitted 1200-page charge-sheet in January this year. The JNU sedition case has seen no proceeding so far due to the Arvind Kejriwal government’s refusal to give nod for prosecution. Accused in the case are Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya and several others.
On 6th February this month when the case was last heard, the Patiala House Court had asked Delhi police to speed up the proceedings by receiving Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi Government’s sanction for prosecution. It had also added that state government cannot delay the case by withholding nod for prosecution.
But it was revealed before the court that the Delhi government did not respond to the charge sheet after receiving it. According to Delhi police, first request to sanction prosecution was sent in 2016, and another request was sent in January this year, without any results.
In cases like JNU sedition row, Police has to solicit a sanction to prosecute from Delhi state’s law ministry. Then the file has to go to Lt. General. The court cannot take cognisance of charge sheet without state government’s nod. It is expected that Delhi Police will ask for another date in the case from the court so as to be able to convince the state government.
In February 2016, the students of JNU had organized an event to mark the anniversary of terrorist Afzal Guru who had attacked the Indian Parliament. Many slogans challenging the Indian State’s sovereignty and calling for its balkanization were raised. At the event, slogans like ‘Bharat Tere Tukde Honge’ and Afzal hum sharminda hain, tere katil jinda hain’ were captured in news reports.
