After controversial slogans, pro Afzal Guru posters found at Jadavpur University

Pertinently strong protests were raised by the students of JNU on the third hanging anniversary of Afzal Guru who was executed in New Delhi’s Tihar jail on February 9, 2013. Kashmir’s freedom. Manipur’s freedom.

The posters appearing on Wednesday morning were purportedly put up by a group which called itself “Radical”. “That rally was not officially convened by the students’ union”, the vice-chancellor said.

A day after pro-Afzal Guru slogans were raised at JU when students took out a torch rally against police crackdown on students at JNU, the high drama continued for the whole day on Wednesday on the university premises. Some fringe elements gave these slogans. “I will not call the police inside the campus”, he added.

All India Students Association (AISA) leader Anumita Mitra justified the slogans saying these only questioned the lack of transparency in Afzal’s trial and his subsequent death penalty.

He said he fully supports freedom of expression and the right of dissent, but he also condemned the anti-national slogans.

A little later, another group of students carrying the tricolour and shouting “Bharat Mata ki jai” went round the campus and even staged a sit-in outside the university’s administrative building Aurobindo Bhavan.

Angry over the tearing of posters, the first group then took out a big rally that went around the campus, alleging the posters were torn by those with Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad connections. The students were sent to Banaras Hindu University, Allahabad University and many others so that pro-Afzal Guru events can be simultaneously organised.

“We are also JU students and we don’t support such activities within the university”.

“The SFI is always against terrorism, communalism and divisive forces”.

Das in a statement said “Presently there is a tendency to polarize the nation on the basis of radical nationalism and attempts are being made to malign the Left parties”.

BJP today targeted the Left and Trinamool Congress over posters in Jadavpur University in Kolkata demanding “freedom” for Kashmir and raising of slogans in favour of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, alleging the Leftist ideology promotes treason and questioning the TMC government’s “silence”.