News Analysis India

Tag: Kanhaiya Kumar

  • It is obvious that those having anti-India ideology will join Congress: BJP on Kanhaiya induction

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Hitting out at the Congress over former JNU student leader Kanhaiya Kumar’s induction into the party, the BJP on Tuesday said it is obvious that all those who have anti-India ideology will join the opposition party as it is “synonymous with divisive and anti-India forces”.

    Kumar, a CPI leader and former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union president, joined the Congress in the presence of Rahul Gandhi here, while independent Gujarat MLA and Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani extended his support to the Congress ideology and said he would contest the next assembly polls on the party symbol.

    Targeting the Congress, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said, “It is natural and obvious that Congress will be the first choice of all those whose ideology is anti-India.”

    He alleged that the Congress has divisive and anti-India ideology and is, therefore, welcoming leaders like Kanhaiya Kumar.

    “The Congress party, its leadership and its ideology have become synonymous with anti-India and divisive forces. And that’s why it is welcoming leaders like Kanhaiya Kumar,” Bhatia said.

    In a tweet, BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya said, “On the anniversary of surgical strike, Congress to admit Kanhaiya Kumar and Jignesh Mewani of ‘Bharat tere tukde honge’ fame. This can’t be a mere coincidence. Joining hands with ‘Breaking India’ forces is now Congress’s raison d’être.”

    Malviya was referring to the Indian Army’s surgical strike against militant launch pads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir following the terror attack in Uri in 2016.

  • Kanhaiya Kumar has no faith in Communist ideology, expelled himself from CPI: D Raja

    He alleged that Kumar was quot;not truthful quot; with the Communist Party of India (CPI) leadership and also not quot;straightforward quot; in his demands from the party.

  • Kanhaiya’s Congress entry may not go down well with senior party leaders in Bihar

    Express News Service

    PATNA: The Congress high command might be hoping that the induction of CPI leader and former president of JNU Students Union Kanhaiya Kumar into the party may come of help in improving the party position in Bihar. But it would not go down well with in a section of party senior state leaders for whom Kumar is just a fiery speaking youth.

    “In Bihar, where perception rules the roost in politics, Kanhaiya Kumar carries a bad impression as he was jailed for making controversial issues. If he is assigned a key post in Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee, there will be the unavoidable difference between him and some senior party leaders, who have been working and holding key posts for a long time,” said a senior leader, preferring anonymity.

    A section of leaders, on condition of anonymity, said that Kanhaiya Kumar can not be a trouble-shooter for the party in Bihar, which has emerged stronger by winning 19 seats in the recent assembly elections.

    ALSO READ | Former JNU student leader Kanhaiya Kumar joins Congress in presence of Rahul Gandhi

    “If delivering unfiltered and fiery statements is the sign of success in politics, all the loudmouth leaders such as Kanhaiya Kumar and others would have succeeded in the last Lok Sabha elections. Kumar was defeated in his home turf of Begusarai which is said to be the strong base of the Left politics in Bihar,” remarked a Congress leader, adding that only a seasoned leader from the Dalit community can do some good to the party to some extent.

    The party high command, even after recommendations made for the appointment of state president in Bihar, has not taken any serious note so far leaving the party to run on its own course.

    Sources said that induction of Kanhaiya Kumar may lead to the defection of some senior leaders to RJD and JD-U. “Boss is always right in whatever decision he takes. But we have the right to live with self-respect and we can not work under an inexperienced leader,” another party leader said.

    Some Congress leaders at the party office in Patna said that Kanhaiya Kumar may prove effective to strengthen party base only in south Bihar and in some districts, which has a considerable population from the Bhumihar community and the Left-oriented people in Begusarai district.

  • Former JNU student leader Kanhaiya Kumar joins Congress in presence of Rahul Gandhi

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Former JNU students’ union president Kanhaiya Kumar joined the Congress on Tuesday in the presence of Rahul Gandhi, saying the oldest party has to be strengthened to “save” the country.

    Kumar addressed a press conference at the Congress headquarters here along with independent Gujarat MLA and Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani who too extended his support to the Congress ideology.

    Asserting that it is detrimental to a country’s interests if the Opposition is weakened, Kumar described the Congress party as a “big ship” and said the small ships will be saved only when the Congress is saved.

    “I have decided to join the country’s oldest party and democratic party because I feel along with the lakhs of youths that if the Congress is not saved, the country will not be saved,” he said.

    Kumar, who was flanked by senior Congress leaders, said the country is “in danger” and “we need the courage of Bhagat Singh, equality of Ambedkar and unity of Mahatma Gandhi”.

    He also took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, describing him as “Govinda of our times who changes his clothes often”.

    “Congress is the country’s oldest and most democratic party:” Former CPI leader #KanhaiyaKumar said after joining the party, while attending a press conference with Gujarat MLA #JigneshMevani.Express Video | @parveennegi1 pic.twitter.com/H7i5RKh691
    — The New Indian Express (@NewIndianXpress) September 28, 2021
    Kumar had joined the Communist Party of India (CPI) ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election and had unsuccessfully contested from Begusarai in Bihar against Giriraj Singh of the BJP.

    Mevani, who is currently a legislator in Gujarat and represents the Vadgam constituency, is the convener of the Rashtriya Dalit Adhikar Manch (RDAM).

    He said there is a sense of urgency to save the country and the youth should create an atmosphere in this regard.

    Mevani said he is not joining the Congress due to “technical reasons” as he is still an independent MLA, but announced that he will contest the next Gujarat election on the Congress symbol and will participate in all Congress activities and campaign for the 2022 Gujarat assembly polls.

    ALSO READ | Posters welcoming Kanhaiya Kumar outside Congress office before his joining

    He is a lawyer-activist and a former journalist.

    Mevani’s entry into the Congress comes at a time when it is wooing the scheduled castes community after handpicking the first Dalit chief minister of Punjab.

    Charanjit Singh Channi succeeded Amarinder Singh as chief minister of Punjab, seen as a bold step by the party for wooing back the scheduled castes, traditionally considered the vote bank of the Congress.

    However, the party suffered a fresh setback in Punjab on Tuesday when state Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu resigned.

  • Posters welcoming Kanhaiya Kumar outside Congress office before his joining

    By Online Desk

    NEW DELHI: Ahead of CPI leader and former JNU Students’ Union president Kanhaiya Kumar’s joining the Congress on Tuesday, posters welcoming Kumar into the Congress have been put up outside the party office in the national capital.

    Sources close to Kanhaiya Kumar had earlier said that he and Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani will join the Congress in the presence of party leader Rahul Gandhi at the party’s headquarters in New Delhi on Tuesday evening. Kumar is a former president of JNU and Mevani belongs to the Dalit community.

    Before joining the Congress, Kumar and Mevani are likely to go to Shaheedi Park at ITO here to garland the statue of Bhagat Singh, a day after the 114th birth anniversary of the freedom fighter. Rahul Gandhi is likely to be present with them at ITO. Youth Congress workers will be present in “large numbers” at the venue.

    Congress general secretary (organization) KC Venugopal and Gujarat Congress working president Hardik Patel are also likely to be present when Kumar and Mevani will join the Congress.

    The joining is taking place after some prominent Congress leaders left the party in recent months. While former Mahila Congress chief Sushmita Dev has joined the Trinamool Congres, former union minister Jitin Prasada is now with the BJP. Veteran Goa Congress leader Luizinho Faleiro resigned from the party on Monday.

    The resignation of youth leaders had caused some disquiet in the party and sections of the party feel that the induction of Kumar and Mevani will help send a positive message to the party rank and file.

    Kumar is a member of the CPI national executive, a top decision-making body of the party. Mevani is an independent MLA from the Vadgam constituency in Gujarat and convener of Rashtriya Dalit Adhikar Manch (RDAM). In the 2017 Gujarat Assembly election, the Congress party did not field its candidate against Mevani in the Vadgam constituency. 

    (With ANI inputs)

  • Dalit leader and Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani to join Congress

    By Express News Service

    MUMBAI: Jignesh Mevani, an independent Gujarat MLA and influential Dalit leader, announced on Saturday that he would join Congress on the birth anniversary of Bhagat Singh on September 28 along with former JNU student leader Kanhaiya Kumar, in Delhi.

    The development comes ahead of the next year’s Assembly elections in the BJP-ruled Gujarat.

    Mevani had won election from the Vadgam Assembly constituency in Banaskantha district in 2017 with the backing of Congress.

    “On September 28, I will be joining the Indian National Congress along with Kanhaiya Kumar,” he said, adding that he will be able to talk in detail about the decision only after that.

    Sources said Mevani will be made a working president of the party’s state unit while Prashant Kishor will be made general secretary of Congress with special department election in charge and Kanhaiya Kumar will be also given a bigger role in Bihar Congress ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

    Working president of Gujarat Congress Hardik Patel will also attend the function in Delhi where he will be inducted into the party in the presence of Rahul Gandhi, Mevani said.

    “We welcome all the revolutionary youths who are willing to work for the development of the country and strengthen the Congress party and the ideals of (Mahatma) Gandhi, Sardar (Patel) and (Jawaharlal) Nehru,” Hardik Patel said in a statement.

    He described Mevani as “an old friend” and said his entry will help the party both in the state and at the national level.

    Chief spokesperson of Gujarat Congress Manish Doshi said Mevani became an MLA with the support of Congress workers in the 2017 elections, and his entry “will strengthen the party’s fight against the corrupt policies of the BJP”.

    “Congress party welcomes everyone who fights against the corrupt policies of the BJP.

    The party policy is to ensure justice to everyone in Gujarat and fight against every such policy of the BJP which is anti-people, anti-youth, anti-farmer, anti-poor,” Doshi said.

    (With agency inputs)

  • Kanhaiya Kumar, Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani to join Congress in October: Reports

    By Online Desk

    Former student leader Kanhaiya Kumar will be joining the Congress in October along with Dalit leader and Independent MLA from Gujarat Jignesh Mevani, as per media reports citing party sources.

    Kanhaiya Kumar was a member of the Communist Party of India’s (CPI) national executive.

    As per a previous report in The New Indian Express, Congress leaders had confirmed that Kanhaiya was in talks with the party and that they were looking to induct him to strengthen the party in Bihar.

    In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, former JNU student Kanhaiya Kumar had contested from Bihar’s Begusarai constituency on a CPI ticket.

    Former student leader @kanhaiyakumar and Gujarat MLA @jigneshmevani80 to join @INCIndia Congress next month: Report @NewIndianXpress@CPIMKerala
    — Ganesh Neelakantan (@minutepoint) September 20, 2021

  • Amid buzz of Kanhaiya Kumar bolting to Congress, CPI tries to hold on to him 

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:   Amid speculation on Kanhaiya Kumar joining the Congress, Communist  Party of India  (CPI) general secretary D Raja said claims about former JNU president leaving the party are attempts to malign him. Raja’s statement came after a meeting with Kanhaiya at the party headquarters, but Congress maintained Kanhaiya would soon join it.

    Raja said Kanhaiya, a member of the party’s national executive, has been at Ajoy Bhavan (party office) for the past two days.  “He said the speculation aimed to malign him. These are just rumours and I condemn it,” Raja told this newspaper.

    When asked about Kanhaiya calling on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Raja said the former was free to meet political leaders and that does not mean he was leaving the party. Speculation was rife that Kanhaiya, reportedly upset with the party over a censure order as part of action against indiscipline, would join the Congress. 

    He was said to be in touch with the high command of the Congress and was likely to be inducted soon. Kanhaiya had contested the Lok Sabha election from Begusarai in Bihar in 2019, but lost to BJP stalwart Giriraj Singh. 

    The former JNU leader has remained silent on the issue and has not responded to the reports of a switch. The CPI maintained Kanhaiya would continue working for the party. Congress leaders, however, confirmed Kanhaiya was in talks with the party.  The Congress is looking to induct him. 

    Congress confirms talks  Congress leaders confirmed that Kanhaiya was in talks with the party. The Congress is looking to induct him to strengthen the party in Bihar.

  • Kanhaiya calls Modi ‘biggest liar’, compares Himanta to Kansa of Mahabharata

    By PTI
    MORIGAON: CPI leader Kanhaiya Kumar hit out at BJP on Saturday calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi “the biggest liar” and comparing the saffron party’s top Assam leader Himanta Biswa Sarma with King Kansa, the tyrant ruler of Mathura in the Mahabharata.

    The former JNU students union president termed Modi’s statement in Bangladesh, where he is on a visit, about going to jail for that country’s freedom as a “big lie”.

    He urged the people of Assam, where the three-phase poll for the state assembly began on Saturday, not to support those who are selling the resources of the country in the name of nationalism.

    Launching a scathing attack on Modi, the Left youth leader questioned whether annually two crore jobs have been created or black money has returned to the country as was promised by him in 2014.

    “What has happened in five years? How are the same people seeking votes again? When I came here someone said that I can be a challenge to Modi.

    I said that to challenge Modi one has to be the biggest liar of the world”.

    Referring to Modi’s comment in Dhaka, Kumar said, “Have you heard what has he (Modi) said in Bangladesh? He said he had also contributed in Bangladesh’s freedom struggle, that he had participated in satyagraha and went to jail. Only BJP leaders can create such level of lies,” Kumar said.

    In the Bangladesh war, India supported the freedom movement in that country and Pakistan opposed it.

    “So a question arises that where was Modi on his satyagraha ? “Was he put behind the bars by the Pakistan government or the Indian government? It is nothing but a big lie,” Kumar said while campaigning for CPI candidate Munin Mahanta.

    Modi had said in Dhaka on Friday that he was part of a satyagraha held to back the liberation of Bangladesh.

    It had led to political slugfest back home.

    He was speaking at the national parade square in the Bangladesh capital to mark the celebrations of the golden jubilee of its Independence and the birth centenary of the father of the nation, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

    Training his guns at Sarma, he said “There is one leader who calls himself Mama (maternal uncle). Kansa was also a mama (of Lord Krishna). You can see the political truth. I just want to know how many promises which were made five years ago have been fulfilled (in the state)”.

    Sarma, who is also the Assam health minister, is fondly called ‘Mama’ mostly by youths for his handling of the COVID-19 situation in the state in 2020.

    During the campaign phase, he is widely being addressed as ‘Mama’.

    “The man who could not be Mama of Congress party, how can he be a Mama of Assam? There is not a bigger traitor than the one who cheats people for his own interests,” Kumar said.

    Sarma was a minister in the Congress government of Tarun Gogoi in the state till he quit the party and joined BJP.

    Criticising BJP, the CPI leader said “Traitors have occupied Delhi. We have to defeat them and make our farmers who are protesting on the borders of Delhi (against farm laws) for months victorious,” Kumar said.

    The ongoing state election is not being held to chose any leader but the government which will work for the people, he said.

    “Gandhi took bullets in his chest for the ballot. This is the power of ballot – don’t misuse it. You have to decide whether you are with the force which is selling the resources of the country in the name of nationalism.”

    “Let love win this election, not hatred. Gandhi was a man of love,” he said.

    Alleging that the BJP government is deeply involved in syndicates of coal, fish and other items, the former student leader said the saffron party only makes false promises every five years.

    “This party cannot do good for Assam. Modi is selling the country to his Gujarati friends. You have to understand the conspiracy of these people. They want to build a syndicate by creating fights among the people in Assam.”

    “They are enacting dramas in Assam. They say that if the Mahajot (Congress-AIUDF alliance) wins, then the social fabric of Assam will change. They don’t know the history of Assam. They should know that this land belongs to Srimanta Sankardeva and Aajaan Fakir,” he added.

  • JNU sedition case: Delhi court takes cognisance of chargesheet against Kanhaiya Kumar, others

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI:  A Delhi court has taken cognisance of a charge-sheet filed by the Delhi Police against former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) President Kanhaiya Kumar and 9 others in a 2016 sedition case and summoned them to face trial on March 15. Kumar and others, including former JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, are accused of raising anti-India slogans during an event in the University. 

    The other seven accused named in the charge-sheet are Kashmiri students Aquib Hussain, Mujeeb Hussain, Muneeb Hussain, Umar Gul, Rayeea Rassol, Bashir Bhat and Basharat, some of them were then studying in Jawaharlal Nehru University, Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Millia Islamia at that time.  Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Pankaj Sharma on Monday took the cognisance of the final report almost a year after the Delhi Police has received requisite sanctions to prosecute the accused. 

    “After careful perusal of the charge-sheet and consideration of the material, all the accused persons are summoned to face trial for the offence… Accused persons be summoned through investigating officer for March 15. Copy of this order be also sent to all the parties through email/Whatsapp,” the judge said in his order. The accused have been charged with offences under sections 124A (sedition), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record), 143 (punishment for being a member of an unlawful assembly), 149 (being a member of an unlawful assembly), 147 (punishment for rioting) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). 

    Under the law, the maximum punishment for sedition is life imprisonment. As many as 36 others, including then JNUSU vice- president Shehla Rashid, Communist Party of India (CPI) leader D Raja’s daughter Aprajita, Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Banojyotsna Lahiri—all former students of JNU—have been named in column 12 of the charge-sheet due to insufficient evidence against them.

    A case was registered on February 11, 2016, under sections 124A and 120B of the IPC against unidentified people at the Vasant Kunj (North) Police Station, following complaints from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Maheish Girri and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the RSS.