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Kanhaiya Kumar Calls JNU Inquiry Committee Report Biased, Declares Indefinite Hunger Strike

JNU Students Rubbish Inquiry Report, To Go On Indefinite Hunger Strike
MUMBAI, INDIA - APRIL 23: JNU Students Union leader Kanhaiya Kumar speaks during a Joint Students Youth Assembly against discrimination and attacks on Universities, at Adarsh Vidyalaya in Tilak Nagar on April 23, 2016 in Mumbai, India. Kumar claimed that he was allegedly strangled on a Jet Airways flight to Pune on Sunday morning in Mumbai by a co-passenger but an initial police probe revealed that it was not a case of assault but the two pushed each other over a petty argument. The student leader was arrested on sedition charges on February 12 after allegedly raising anti-India slogans at the JNU campus. He was given bail after police failed to produce any evidence to back the charge. (Photo by Arijit Sen/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)
Hindustan Times via Getty Images
MUMBAI, INDIA - APRIL 23: JNU Students Union leader Kanhaiya Kumar speaks during a Joint Students Youth Assembly against discrimination and attacks on Universities, at Adarsh Vidyalaya in Tilak Nagar on April 23, 2016 in Mumbai, India. Kumar claimed that he was allegedly strangled on a Jet Airways flight to Pune on Sunday morning in Mumbai by a co-passenger but an initial police probe revealed that it was not a case of assault but the two pushed each other over a petty argument. The student leader was arrested on sedition charges on February 12 after allegedly raising anti-India slogans at the JNU campus. He was given bail after police failed to produce any evidence to back the charge. (Photo by Arijit Sen/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

Defiant JNU students who have been punished in connection with a controversial event on campus on Tuesday asserted that they will not pay the fine or vacate hostels as ordered by the university, but will go on an indefinite hunger strike from tomorrow demanding withdrawal of orders.

"It is a casteist inquiry committee. We don't believe the committee nor the penalties imposed, which is why we will burn the report," JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, accompanied by Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya - who also are facing disciplinary action, said at a press conference on campus this afternoon.

The students took to social media to garner support.

"We have rejected the so called high-level enquiry committee right from the day it was set up as an undemocratic and biased one so there is no point accepting the punishment meted out to us on basis of its findings," Kumar added.

The university yesterday rusticated Umar for one semester, Kashmiri student Mujeeb Gattoo for two semesters and Anirban till July 15. As per decision, Bhattacharya has been barred from pursuing any course in JNU for next 5 years. Kanhaiya has been penalised with Rs 10,000.

Today at #Azadi Chowk @4pm. we will burn fake #HLEC report and will fight back against the anti social justice admin of #JNU#NoMoreRohith

— Kanhaiya Kumar (@kanhaiyajnusu) April 26, 2016

Kanhaiya, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya were arrested on charges of sedition in February in connection with an event against the 2013 hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru during which anti-national slogans were allegedly raised. They are now out on bail.

V S Achuthanandan expressed solidarity with Kanhaiya calling him a comrade.

Expressing solidarity with Com.#Kanhaiya Kumar:Actions against #JNU students to be condemned

— VS Achuthanandan (@vs1923) April 26, 2016

13 other students have been let off with varied fines. The campus has been made out of bounds for two former students -- Banojyotsana Lahiri and Draupadi -- while hostel facilities of Ashutosh Kumar and Komal Mohite have been withdrawn for a year and till July 21 respectively.

"We have decided that none of the students will pay the fine or vacate their hostels. We demand that the university administration withdraws these orders as we have maintained right from the beginning that we do not have faith in this enquiry panel and it should be reconstituted," JNUSU Vice President Shehla Rashid Shora said.

"We will begin an indefinite hunger strike from tomorrow after staging a protest march from varsity's Ganga dhaba to administration block. The decision has been well-timed by the university officials to avoid any protests as summer break is about to begin but we will not bow down and continue our fight," she added.

(With PTI Inputs)

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.