feeds from sacw.net
print version[updated on 22 February 2016]
India: Crackdown at JNU, Arrest of President of Students Union - Press Statement by Teachers and Former Students
http://sacw.net/article12380.html
India: Arrest of JNU Students Union Leader on Charges of Sedition - Statements by Human Rights Groups (12 Feb 2016)
http://sacw.net/article12383.html
[Statement by Human Rights Watch]
India: Outspoken Activists Charged with Sedition (19 Feb 2016)
https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/02/19/india-outspoken-activists-charged-sedition
Statement on the attack on JNU, Sedition charges on Kanhaiya Kumar and attack on Journalists
http://www.epw.in/journal/2016/8/web-exclusives/journalists-standwithjnu.html
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[13 February 2016]
· Actions in JNU an attempt at diverting the students anger over Rohith Vemula Suicide and continued discrimination
· Withdraw Police from JNU Campus, let there be an impartial enquiry in the incidents of February 9th by University
· Release Kanhaiya Kumar immediately and withdraw all charges
New Delhi, February 13 : Delhi Police and its high handedness has once again come to the scrutiny and makes us question if it is acting as a political tool rather than being the enforcer of the law and order situation in the State. The swift move to arrest Kanhaiya Kumar, President JNUSU on charges of Sedition, is highly condemnable. A witch hunt is going on at Jawahar Lal Nehru University (JNU) campus and everyone is seen as a suspect at this moment. This must stop immediately.
The facts of the incidents on February 9th are not yet clear but on the trumped charges, media hyperbole and complete polarization of views have created a situation where, one of the top most University of the country is being targeted and maligned. The political dissent of the students with the ruling establishment as evident on several occasions now, #OccupyUGC, #RhoithVemula Suicide and others is being used to criminalise them and term the whole campus as a den of Pakistani sympathisers, terrorists and Naxalites. This is completely malicious and fictitious and will only vitiate the atmosphere.
We need to remember that there is simmering tension and anger across the university campuses across the country, thousands are marching everyday in different campuses bringing to fore the wrongs within the higher education system and the discriminations which prevail there. However, rather than addressing any such issues, be it appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as the FTII Chairperson, curtailing of non-NET fellowships, suicides of Dalit and other students, increased interventions from the communal forces in teaching, syllabus or administration etc. NDA government and HRD Minister has only unleashed state terror on them.
The current actions by the government at JNU can’t be seen in isolation and needs to be seen as part of the larger conspiracy to divert attention and seek political dividends in forthcoming elections and criminalise any political dissent or questioning of the government in the country today.
In the specific incidents of the shouting of the anti national slogans, let there be an independent and impartial enquiry conducted but it doesn’t behove of a democracy that we unleash police on campus and start a witch hunt in the heart of the capital and criminalise the whole University.
Its time government took measures to instill confidence in the rule of law and not engage in political vendetta for narrow political gains. NAPM demands immediate release of the JNUSU President, Kanhaiya Kumar and let an impartial enquiry be conducted by the University and bring the facts to the light and public domain. Delhi Police must vacate the campus immediately and stop the witch hunt and withdraw the FIR against unnamed persons. We also urge some of the news channels engaged in complete hyperbole to behave responsibly and not engage in spreading misinformation and further vitiate the atmosphere.
Medha Patkar - Narmada Bachao Andolan and the National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM); Prafulla Samantara - Lok Shakti Abhiyan & Lingraj Azad – Samajwadi Jan Parishad - Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti, NAPM, Odisha; Dr. Sunilam, Aradhna Bhargava - Kisan Sangharsh Samiti & Meera – Narmada Bachao Andolan, NAPM, MP; Suniti SR, Suhas Kolhekar, Prasad Bagwe - NAPM, Maharashtra; Gabriele Dietrich, Geetha Ramakrishnan – Unorganised Sector Workers Federation, NAPM, TN; C R Neelkandan – NAPM Kerala; P Chennaiah & Ramakrishnam Raju – NAPM Andhra Pradesh, Arundhati Dhuru, Richa Singh, Nandlal Master - NAPM, UP; Sister Celia - Domestic Workers Union & Rukmini V P, Garment Labour Union, NAPM, Karnataka; Vimal Bhai - Matu Jan sangathan & Jabar Singh, NAPM, Uttarakhand; Anand Mazgaonkar, Krishnakant - Paryavaran Suraksh Samiti, NAPM Gujarat; Kamayani Swami, Ashish Ranjan – Jan Jagran Shakti Sangathan & Mahendra Yadav – Kosi Navnirman Manch, NAPM Bihar; Faisal Khan, Khudai Khidmatgar, J S Walia, NAPM Haryana; Kailash Meena, NAPM Rajasthan; Amitava Mitra & Sujato Bhadra, NAPM West Bengal; Bhupender Singh Rawat – Jan Sangharsh Vahini & Rajendra Ravi, Madhuresh Kumar and Shabnam Shaikh – NAPM, Delhi
For details contact : 9818905316 | email : napmindia[at]gmail.com
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Solidarity Statement by international Scholars and Former JNU Students
SOLIDARITY STATEMENT
We, the undersigned, stand in solidarity with the students, faculty and staff of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi against the illegal ongoing police action since February 9, 2016. With them, we affirm the autonomy of the university as a non-militarized space for freedom of thought and expression. Accordingly, we condemn police presence on campus and the harassment of students on the basis of their political beliefs.
The charge of sedition, under the guise of which the police have been given a carte blanche to enter the JNU campus, to raid student hostels, arrest and detain students, including Kanhaiya Kumar, the current president of the JNU Students Union, is an alibi for the incursion of an authoritarian regime onto the university campus. Under Indian law sedition applies only to words and actions that directly issue a call to violence. The peaceful demonstration and gathering of citizens does not constitute criminal conduct. The police action on JNU campus is illegal under the constitution of India.
An open, tolerant, and democratic society is inextricably linked to critical thought and expression cultivated by universities in India and abroad. As teachers, students, and scholars across the world, we are watching with extreme concern the situation unfolding at JNU and refuse to remain silent as our colleagues (students, staff, and faculty) resist the illegal detention and autocratic suspension of students. We urge the Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University to protect members of the university community and safeguard their rights.
Dated 15 February 2016
- Asma Abbas, Bard College at Simon’s Rock
- Syed Shahid Abbas, Institute of Development Studies, Brighton, U.K.
- Gilbert Achcar, SOAS, University of London
- Katie Addleman, University of Toronto
- Barun Adhikary, JNU
- Aniket Aga, Yale University
- Ashish Aggarwal, (JNU 2012)
- Aftab Ahmad, (JNU 2000), Columbia University
- Aijaz Ahmad, University of California, Irvine
- Meena Alexander, City University of New York
- Nosheen Ali, Habib University
- Tariq Omar Ali, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign
- Liyanage Amarakeerthi, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka
- Harini Amarasuriya, Open University of Sri Lanka
- Eyal Amiran, UC Irvine, California, USA
- Dibyesh Anand, University of Westminster
- Sundari Anitha, (JNU 1996), University of Lincoln Brayford Pool
- Ponni Arasu, (JNU 2005), University of Toronto
- Jayadev Athreya, University of Washington
- Anjali Arondekar, University of California, Santa Cruz
- Saurabh Arora, University of Sussex
- Edward Anderson, (JNU 2009), Cambridge University
- Abdul Kalam Azad, TISS-UNICEF
- Edward Bacal, University of Toronto
- Nandita Badami, (JNU 2011), University of California Irvine
- Shiladitya Banerjee, University of Chicago
- Amit R. Baishya, (JNU 2003), University of Oklahoma
- Anirban Baishya, (JNU 2013), University of Southern California
- Aparna Balachandran, (JNU 2000), University of Delhi
- Sai Balakrishnan, Harvard University
- Ian Balfour, York University
- Jairus Banaji, (JNU 1975) SOAS, London
- Murad Banaji, University of Middlesex
- Sandeep Banerjee, McGill University
- Sreenanti Banerjee, Birkbeck, University of London
- Anustup Basu, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Arani Basu, (JNU 2015), Humboldt University
- Ananyo “Tito†Basu, American Cooperative School of Tunis
- Priyanka Basu, (JNU 2011), SOAS, London
- Srimati Basu, University of Kentucky
- Subho Basu, (JNU 1988), McGill University
- Lalit Batra, University of Minnesota
- Daniel Bender, University of Toronto
- Ankur Betageri, IIT-Delhi
- Madhav Badami, McGill University
- Sukanya Banerjee, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
- Homi Bhabha, Harvard University
- Gurminder K Bhambra, University of Warwick/Linnaeus University
- Brenna Bhandar, SOAS, University of London
- V. Bhaskar, (JNU 1981, JNUSU President 1981), University of Texas at Austin
- Udit Bhatia, Oxford University
- Varuni Bhatia, (JNU), University of Michigan Ann Arbor
- Enakshi Bhattacharya, IIT-Madras
- Gargi Bhattacharyya, University of East London
- Nandini Bhattacharya, (JNU 2005), University of Dundee
- Ritwik Bhattacharyya, Princeton University
- Shreya Bhattacherjee, (JNU 2010), University of California, Riverside
- Soumyadip Bandyopadhyaya, IIT-Kharagpur
- Akeel Bilgrami, Columbia University
- Debanjali Biswas, (JNU 2011), King’s College London
- Nabaneeta Biswas, University of Georgia
- Somak Biswas, (JNU 2015), University of Warwick
- Amiel Bize, Columbia University
- Manuela Boatcă, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg
- Anannya Bohidar, (JNU 2014), University of Pennsylvania
- Jenisha Borah, (JNU 2013)
- David Boyk, University of California, Berkeley
- Andrea Brock, University of Sussex
- Wendy Brown, University of California, Berkeley
- Kriti Budhiraja, (JNU 2014), University of Minnesota Twin Cities
- Allison Busch, Columbia University
- Judith Butler, University of California, Berkeley
- Erica Burman, University of Manchester
- Utathya C., (JNU 2011), University of Illinois
- Linda Carty, Syracuse University
- Radhika Chadha, (JNU 2005), Delhi University
- Pavel Chakraborty, (JNU 2003), Oxford University
- Pratik Chakrabarti, (JNU 2000), University of Manchester
- Dipesh Chakrabarty, University of Chicago
- Priyanka Chakraborty, Southern Methodist University
- Paula Chakravartty, NYU
- Aditi Chandra, University of California
- Ananya Chatterjea, University of Minnesota
- Anindita Chatterjee, University of Minnesota
- Anomitro Chatterjee, (JNU 2010), Georgia State Universit
- Chandrayee Chatterjee, (JNU 2012), Georgia State University.
- Partha Chatterjee, Columbia University
- Piya Chatterjee, Scripps College
- Sreya Chatterjee, (JNU 2004)
- Sumita Dutt Chatterjee, (JNU 1989), University of Miami
- Sameer Chaturvedi, Jawaharlal Nehru University
- Antara Ray Chaudhury, Jawaharlal Nehru University
- Divya Cherian, (JNU 2008), Rutgers University
- Vanessa Chishti, (JNU 2015)
- Meghna Chaudhuri, (JNU 2012), New York University
- Francis Cody, University of Toronto
- Dia Da Costa, University of Alberta
- Bedatri Datta Choudhury, (JNU 2012), New York University
- Mrinalini Chakravorty, University of Virginia.
- Lawrence Cohen, University of California, Berkeley
- Aditi Surie von Czechowski, Columbia University
- Katyayani Dalmia, (JNU 2008), New School
- Deepra Dandekar, University of Heidelberg, Germany
- Chandler Davis, University of Toronto
- Dharashree Das, (JNU 2005), Simon Fraser University
- Manishita Dass, Royal Holloway, University of London
- Sangeeta Das, (JNU 2007), Jawaharlal Nehru University
- Satadru Das, (JNU 2008), Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge
- Ananya Dasgupta, (JNU 2003), Case Western Reserve University
- Rohit K Dasgupta, University of Southampton
- Sandipto Dasgupta, King’s College, London
- Sejuti Dasgupta, (JNU 2010), Michigan State University
- Natalie Zemon Davis, University of Toronto
- Anuradha De, (JNU 1992), CORD
- Rohit De, Yale University
- Siddhartha Deb, Writer, The New School
- Sanchia deSouza, University of Toronto
- Federico Demaria, ICTA UAB, Barcelona, Spain
- Karishma Desai, Teachers College, Columbia University
- Jigna Desai, University of Minnesota
- Meenu Deswal, (JNU 2014), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
- Garima Dhabai, (JNU 2015), Yale University
- Meena Dhanda, University of Wolverhampton
- Neha Dhole, (JNU 2010), University of Pittsburgh
- Rohan D’Souza, (JNU 1998), Kyoto University
- Debjani Dutta, (JNU 2012), University of Southern California
- Devika Dutt, (2014), University of Massachusetts, Amherst
- Timothy S. Dobe, Grinnell College
- J Daniel Elam, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Kanishka Elupula, (JNU 2008), Harvard University
- Sara Feldman, University of Illinois
- Peter Fitting, University of Toronto
- Bashabi Fraser, Edinburgh Napier University
- Kathleen Frederickson, University of California, Davis
- Elaine Freedgood, New York University
- Lina M Fruzzetti, Brown University
- Richard Fung, OCAD University
- Debjani Ganguly, University of Virginia
- Keya Ganguly, University of Minnesota
- Tejaswini Ganti, NYU
- Faisal Garba, University of Cape Town
- Gaurav C. Garg,(JNU 2013), New York University
- David Gellner, Oxford University
- Robert M Geraci, Manhattan College
- Roos Gerritsen, Heidelberg University & IIT Madras
- Maitreesh Ghatak, London School of Economics
- Bishnupriya Ghosh, University of California, Santa Barbara
- Arunabh Ghosh, Harvard University
- Vinay Gidwani, University of Minnesota
- Natasha Ginwala, (JNU 2010), curator
- Tula Goenka, Syracuse University
- Dishanka Gogoi, Jawaharlal Nehru University
- Hugo Gorringe, University of Edinburgh
- Manu Goswami, New York University
- Anup Grewal, University of Toronto
- Ann Grodzins Gold, Syracuse University
- Priyamvada Gopal, (JNU 1991), University of Cambridge
- Mahesh Gopalan, (JNU 2012), St. Stephen’s College, New Delhi
- Ratna Goradia, (JNU 2008), New York Post
- Yogita Goyal, University of California Los Angeles
- Radhika Govindrajan, (JNU 2006), University of Washington
- Isabelle Guérin, Centre d’études en Sciences Sociales Sur Les Mondes Américains Africains et Asiatiques
- Akhil Gupta, University of California, Los Angeles
- Anoushka Gupta (JNU 2008), York University
- Bishnupriya Gupta, (JNU 1983), University of Warwick
- Bipasha Guptaroy, (JNU 1984), University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
- Shubhra Gururani, York University, Canada
- Jaswant Guzder, McGill University
- Alexis Halkovic (JNU 1996), The Graduate Center, City University of New York
- Thomas Blom Hansen, Stanford University
- Anusha Hariharan, (JNU 2011), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Martin Harries, University of California, Irvine
- Barbara Harriss-White, Oxford University
- Anneeth Kaur Hundle, University of California, Merced
- Phil Hutchinson, Manchester Metropolitan University
- Aashique Ahmed Iqbal, (JNU 2011), University of Oxford
- Feyzi Ismail, SOAS, University of London
- Bharati Jagannatha, (JNU PhD 2010), Miranda House
- Sarandha Jain, (JNU 2015)
- Bhawana Jaiswal, (JNU 2015)
- Sudeep Kumar Jaiswal, (JNU 2015), East China Normal University (ECNU)
- Chinnaiah Jangam, (JNU 1998), Carleton College
- Pranav Jani, Ohio State University
- Nicolas Jaoul, EHESS/CNRS, France
- Arjun Jayadev, University of Massachusetts, Boston
- Rajshri Jayaraman, ESMT Berlin
- Ketaki Jaywant, (JNU, 2008), University of Minnesota
- Patricia Jeffery, University of the Edinburgh
- Anderson Jeremiah, Lancaster University
- Shikha Jhingan, Jawaharlal Nehru University
- Bhoomika Joshi, (JNU 2009), Yale University
- Meghana Joshi, Rutgers University
- Abhishek Kaicker, University of California, Berkeley
- Vidya Kalaramadam, William Paterson University of New Jersey
- Virinder S Kalra, University of Manchester
- Sangeeta Kamat, University of Massachusetts at Amherst
- Lipika Kamra, (JNU 2010), University of Oxford
- Aparna Kapadia, (JNU 2005), Williams College
- Caren Kaplan, University of California, Davis
- Ilan Kapoor, York University
- Anupama Kapse, Queens College, CUNY
- Jyotsna Kapur, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
- Radha Kapuria, (JNU 2013), King’s College London
- Sumayya Kassamalli, Columbia University
- Malavika Kasturi, (JNU 1988-1992), University of Toronto
- Suvir Kaul, University of Pennsylvania
- Ravinder Kaur, (JNU 1996, JNUSU General Secretary 1994-1995), University of Copenhagen
- Sudipta Kaviraj, Columbia University
- Prashant Keshavmurthy, (JNU 1998), McGill University
- Prashant Kidambi, (JNU 1994), University of Leicester
- Wiebke Keim, CNRS/University of Strasbourg
- Dipti Khera, New York University
- Jocelyn Killmer, Syracuse University
- Makiko Kimura, (JNU 2004), Tsuda College, Tokyo
- Pasha M. Khan, McGill University
- Ashok Kotwal, University of British Columbia
- Ashish Koul, (JNU 2006), Vanderbilt University
- Monomita Roy Krishna, (JNU 1982), University of Hawaii
- Sankaran Krishna, (JNU 1982), University of Hawaii at Manoa
- Jesse Ross Knutson, University of Hawai’i at MÄ noa
- Abdul Kuddus, (JNU 2005), Learning Solutions Consultant
- Sikandar Kumar, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
- Leena Kumarappan, London Metropolitan University
- CJ Kuncheria, (JNU 2015), Yale University
- Rishabh Kumar, (JNU 2008), The New School, New York
- Sahil Kureshi, (JNU 2013), Oxford University
- Vinay Lal, University of California Los Angeles
- Mahmood Kooria, (JNU 2012), Leiden University, the Netherlands
- Premesh Lalu, University of the Western Cape
- Joel Lee, Williams College
- Jens Lerche, SOAS, University of London
- Darryl Li, Yale Law School
- David Palumbo-Liu, Stanford University
- Madhura Lohokare, (JNU 2003), Syracuse University
- Munira Lokhandwala, University of California, Berkeley
- Jinee Lokaneeta, Drew University
- Ania Loomba, University of Pennsylvania
- Ritty Lukose, New York University
- Sumi Madhok, (JNU 1997), London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
- Aparna Mahariya, (JNU 2015), University of Exeter
- Kama Maclean, UNSW Australia
- Rochona Majumdar, University of Chicago
- Meghana Marathe, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
- Sanjeev Routray, (JNU 2003), University of British Columbia
- Sudhir Mahadevan, University of Washington, Seattle
- Bakirathi Mani, (JNU 1997) Swarthmore College
- Swati Mantri, IIT Delhi
- Rohan Dominic Mathews, (JNU 2015)
- Surbhi Mahajan, (JNU 2008), Development Researcher
- Aakshi Magazine, (JNU 2011), University of St Andrews, UK
- Tapasi Mathur, (JNU 2008), University of Michigan
- Lyla Mehta, Institute of Development Studies, UK
- Nora Melnikova, Charles University, Prague
- Dilip Menon, University of Witwatersrand
- Gayatri A. Menon, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru
- Minakshi Menon, (JNU 1985), Max Planck Institute for the History of Science
- Nikhil Menon, (JNU 2011), Princeton University
- Thomas Metcalf, University of California, Berkeley
- Alessandra Mezzadri, SOAS, London
- Sumeet Mhaskar, University of Göttingen
- Darshana Mini, University of Southern California
- Geeta Mishra, IIT Delhi
- Sangay Mishra, Drew University
- Saurabh Mishra, (JNU 2004), University of Sheffield
- Shaivya Mishra, (JNU 2013), University of California Berkeley
- Mayank Misra, Princeton University
- Timothy Mitchell, Columbia University
- Kirtimaan Mohan, (JNU 2009), Michigan State University, East Lansing
- Taneesha Devi Mohan, (JNU 2010), London School of Economics
- Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Syracuse University
- Padmini Mongia, (JNU Visiting Faculty 2008-2010), Franklin & Marshall College
- Radhika Mongia, York University, Toronto
- Nayanika Mookherjee, (JNU 1996), Durham University, UK
- Rosalind C. Morris, Columbia University
- Debashree Mukherjee, (JNU 2009), Columbia University
- Ishan Mukherjee, (JNU 2011), Trinity College, University of Cambridge
- Sanjukta Mukherjee, (JNU), DePaul University
- Shagata Mukherjee, Georgia State University
- Shruti Mukherjee, (JNU 2013), SUNY Stony Brook
- Sinjini Mukherjee, (JNU 2008), Heidelberg University
- Upamanyu Pablo Mukherjee, Warwick University
- Uponita Mukherjee, (JNU 2014), Columbia University
- Maroona Murmu, Jadavpur University
- Hema A Murthy, IIT Madras
- Sharun W. Mukand, Warwick University
- Dulali Nag, Indian Institute for Social Welfare and Business Management
- Richa Nagar, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
- Kartik Nair, (JNU 2010), New York University
- Rahul Nair, (JNU 1998), Antioch College
- Vijayanka Nair, New York University
- Siddharth Narrain, Lawyer and Legal Researcher
- Poonam Natarajan, (JNU 1976), CSRD/SSS
- Anjali Nath, American University of Beirut
- Vasuki Nesiah, The Gallatin School, NYU
- Eleanor Newbigin, SOAS, University of London
- Anirban Nigam, (JNU 2014), University of California Irvine
- Madhurima Nundy, Institute of Chinese Studies
- Daniel O’Connor, University of Edinburg
- Francesca Orsini, SOAS London
- Goldie Osuri, University of Warwick
- Poornima Paidipathy, (JNU 2000), Cambridge University
- Shailaja Paik, University of Cincinnati
- Poulomi Pal, (JNU 2010), Amherst College
- Ravi Arvind Palat, SUNY Binghamton
- Ankita Pandey, (JNU 2008), University of Oxford
- Ishita Pande, (JNU 1999), Queen’s University
- Ankita Pandey, (JNU 2008), University of Oxford
- Khaliq Parkar, (JNU 2015), Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts, Pune
- Ian Parker, University of Leicester
- Jonathan Parry, London School of Economics and Political Science
- Prachi Patankar, South Asia Solidarity Initiative
- Anuranjan Pegu, (JNU 2005), New York
- Mario da Penha, Rutgers University
- Sonali Perera, Hunter College of the City University New York
- Lakshmi Prasad, Jawaharlal Nehru University
- Jessy Phillip, (JNU 2015), TISS
- Kavita Philip, University of California, Irvine
- Chris Pinney, University College London
- Sheldon Pollock, Columbia University
- Gyan Prakash, (JNU 1975), Princeton University
- Ashok Prasad, Colorado State University
- David Prochaska, University of Illinois
- Navtej K. Purewal, SOAS University of London
- Teja Varma Pusapati, University of Oxford
- Asgar Qadri, George Washington University
- Nayma Qayum, Manhattanville College
- R. Radhakrishnan, University of California Irvine
- Pallavi Raghavan, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi
- Raisur Rahman, (JNU 2000) Wake Forest University
- Amit S. Rai, Queen Mary, University of London
- Shirin Rai, University of Warwick
- Arvind Rajagopal, New York University
- Dalpat Rajpurohit, (JNU 2008), Columbia University
- Suvrat Raju, International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, Bangalore
- Harsha Ram, University of California, Berkeley
- Bhavani Raman, (JNU 1999), University of Toronto
- Lucinda Ramberg, Cornell University
- M.V. Ramana, Princeton University
- Namita Ranganathan, (JNU 1988), Delhi University
- Bhargav Rani, (JNU 2014), City University of New York
- Barbara Ransby, University of Illinois at Chicago
- Anupama Rao, Barnard College, Columbia University
- Meghana Rao, University of Toronto
- Rahul Rao, SOAS, University of London
- Shruti Rao, (JNU 2011), University of British Columbia
- Harshit Rathi, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
- Debraj Ray, NYU
- Raka Ray, University of California, Berkeley
- Reeju Ray, (JNU 2007), University of Western Ontario
- Sangeeta Ray, University of Maryland
- Boike Rehbein, Humboldt University Berlin
- Allen F. Roberts, University of California, Los Angeles
- E. Natalie Rothman, University of Toronto
- Soumyadip Roy, (JNU 2009), Iowa State University
- Srila Roy, University of Witwatersrand
- Srirupa Roy, University of Goettingen
- Srabani Roychoudhury, (JNU 1992), Jawaharlal Nehru University
- Kanchana N. Ruwanpura, University of Edinburgh
- Poulomi Saha, University of California, Berkeley
- Sangita Saha, (JNU 2011), University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
- Arun Saldanha, University of Minnesota
- Aditi Saraf, Johns Hopkins University
- Aprajita Sarcar, (JNU 2013), Queen’s University Ontario
- Aditya Sarkar, (JNU 2005), Warwick University
- Parnisha Sarkar, (JNU 2015), University of Toronto
- Andrew Sartori, New York University
- Akshya Saxena, (JNU 2008), University of Minnesota
- Dwaipayan Sen, Amherst College
- Moumita Sen, (JNU 2009), University of Oslo
- Ruchira Sen, (JNU 2012), University of Missouri-Kansas City
- Aviroop Sengupta, (JNU 2014), Columbia University
- Uditi Sen, (JNU 2004), Hampshire College
- Sanjay Seth, Goldsmiths, University of London
- Aradhana Anu Sharma, Wesleyan University
- Partha Pratim Shil, (JNU 2008) Trinity College, Cambridge
- Arushi Singh, (JNU 2014), University of California, Los Angeles
- Bhrigupati Singh, Brown University
- Prerna Singh, Brown University
- Rashmi Singh (JNU 2011)
- Aarti Sethi, (JNU 2009), Columbia University
- Alpa Shah, London School of Economics and Political Science
- Chayanika Shah, TISS Mumbai
- Svati Shah, University of Massachusetts/JNU
- Qaiser Shamim, (JNU 1981)
- Jayeeta Sharma, University of Toronto
- Nitin Sharma, Purdue University
- Shalini Sharma, (JNU 1996), Keele University
- Ajay Skaria, University of Minnesota
- Samira Sheikh, (JNU 1994), Vanderbilt University
- Benjamin Seigel, (Visiting Professor JNU 2007-8), Boston University
- Marc Siegel, Goethe University, Frankfurt
- Pritam Singh, (JNU 1976, Student Councillor JNU-SSS 1973), Oxford Brookes University
- Manjira Sinha, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur
- Subir Sinha, SOAS University of London
- Suvadip Sinha, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
- Tanvi Sirari, (JNU 2012), University of British Columbia
- Ari Sitas, University of Cape Town
- Ruhi Sonal, (JNU 2012), IIT Delhi
- Jonathan Spencer, University of Edinburgh
- Alex Steele, University of Minnesota
- Rachel Sturman, Bowdoin College
- Abha Sur, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Columbia University
- Kannan Srinivasan, Wertheim Study New York Public Library
- Ravindran Sriramachandran, Ashoka University
- Tanvi Sirari, (JNU 2012), University of British Columbia
- Priyanka Srivastava, (JNU 1995-2000) University of Massachusetts, Amherst
- Ulrike Stark, The University of Chicago
- Tony K. Stewart, Vanderbilt University
- Andy Stirling, University of Sussex
- Ajantha Subramanian, Harvard University
- Narendra Subramanian, McGill University
- Sanjay Subrahmanyam, University of California, Los Angeles
- Meghant Sudan, Concordia University, Montreal
- Sanjukta Sunderason, Leiden University
- Byapti Sur, Leiden University
- Deborah Sutton, (JNU 2001), Lancaster University
- Ashwini Tambe, University of Maryland-College Park
- Anand Vivek Taneja, Vanderbilt University
- Akshaya Tankha, (JNU 2006), University of Toronto
- Shabnum Tejani, SOAS, University of London
- Kamal Kumar Tanti, University of Technology and Management, Shillong
- Kuhu Tanvir, (JNU 2012), University of Pittsburgh
- Rei Terada, University of California, Irvine
- Shubha Tewari, University of Massachusetts
- Sharika Thiranagama, Stanford University
- Sudipa Topdar, (JNU 2002), Illinois State University
- Saadia Toor, College of Staten Island, City University of New York
- Nishita Trisal, University of Michigan
- Alexios Tsigkas, New School
- Malvika Tyagi, IIT Delhi
- Bhargav Rani, (JNU 2014), City University of New York
- Lalit Vachani, University of Göttingen.
- Nilita Vachani, New York University
- Aparna Vaidik, (JNU 2005), Ashoka University
- Anand Vaidya, University of Bergen
- Anish Vanaik, (JNU 2008), Purdue University
- Rashmi Varma, University of Warwick
- Ramaa Vasudevan, (JNU 1986-88) Colorado State University
- Rajesh Venogopal, London School of Economics
- Kartik Verma, (JNU 2008), University of Utah
- Vertika, (JNU 2014), McGill University, Montréal
- Ramna Walia, (JNU 2011), University of Texas at Austin
- Gary Wang, University of Toronto
- Tyler Walker Williams, (JNU 2007), JNUSU Vice President 2006-2007, University of Chicago
- Kalpana Wilson, London School of Economics and Political Science
- Nicole Wolf, Goldsmiths, University of London
- Niharika Yadav, Princeton University
- Harshita Yalamarty, (JNU 2013), York University
- Suvaid Yaseen, (JNU 2013), Brown University
- Akhila Yechury, (JNU 2007), University of St. Andrews
- Dilan Yildirim, Harvard University
- Nima Lamu Yolmo, (JNU 2011)
- Vazira Zamindar, Brown University
- John Zavos, (JNU 1988), University of Manchester
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Statement of Solidarity with Student Protests in India, from students of the University of Chicago
We, the undersigned, strongly condemn the arbitrary, unconstitutional, and anti-democratic actions of the BJP/RSS/ABVP/Delhi Police continuum at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus. We demand an immediate end to all police action on campus, a withdrawal of all frivolous charges against the President of JNU Students’ Union, Kanhaiya Kumar, and other students, as well as an end to the campaign of harassment and intimidation against students at the university.
We believe that these actions by the Indian state and its associated groups and institutions are part of a larger campaign to stifle dissenting voices in the country, especially on university campuses which have persistently resisted the capitalist, Brahmanical hegemony of the current government. This was clearly evident in the institutional murder of Rohith Vemula, a Dalit PhD student at Hyderabad Central University (HCU) last month. The similarity of the modus operandi in Hyderabad and Delhi is striking: Rohith and his comrades had been accused of ‘anti-national’ activities for their condemnation of the hanging of Yakub Memon, and suspended from their academic positions on these undemocratic grounds. Similar charges have been framed against the students of JNU for organizing an event in solidarity with the struggle of Kashmiri people for their right to self-determination. To make matters murkier, it is now certain that at the event, which also marked the third anniversary of the execution of Afzal Guru, the ABVP was involved in raising the controversial slogans that are being cited to justify the sedition charge. We are of the firm opinion that protesting against state violence is a fundamental right that must not become vulnerable to arbitrary violation by governments, police and university administrations.
We believe that the colonial-era laws of sedition — already diluted and read down by the Supreme Court — are an embarrassment to India’s democratic principles. The criminalization of dissent in this case reveals how India’s current political leadership has been unable to respect diversity and guarantee the full legal rights of its people. Its political program imagines the citizen as upper caste, heterosexual, male, Hindu; its economic program necessitates a blind faith in neoliberalism; and its social program continually imagines an enemy – the Muslim, the Dalit, the Left. It is not surprising that a government so debilitated and blinkered by its ideological narrowness has invoked the charge of sedition and sent police forces into the JNU campus, an action reminiscent of the worst years of Emergency.
We are also distressed by views expressed in certain sections of the Indian media regarding the legitimacy of political activism in public universities. This argument claims that since central and state governments subsidize education in public institutions, it is the responsibility of beneficiaries to refrain from critiquing state policies and to solely prioritize their studies. We firmly reject this cost-benefit understanding of education as shallow, apolitical, and deeply reactionary. As the saying goes, ‘education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire’. The current administration and sections of the media would prefer students to remain uncritical of the violence of Brahmanism, communalism, and neoliberal capitalism. But the Rohiths of the world will keep lighting a fire and keep burning down bigotry. We believe that both public education and free speech are fundamental rights enshrined in the Indian Constitution, rights that have been earned through long struggle and rights that we will keep fighting for in India and elsewhere as we face systematic neoliberal onslaughts on dissent and education.
To our friends, colleagues and comrades in JNU, HCU, FTII and elsewhere, we stand with you in your resistance against state sponsored violence, which curbs any form of dissent on the one hand, and on the other, condones hate speech by Hindu nationalists. We believe that scholarship and the concomitant development of our critical faculties should be used in dreaming of and implementing a better, pluralistic and just society.
- Sayantan Saha Roy, PhD student, Anthropology
- Ahona Panda, PhD student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Harini Kumar, PhD student, Anthropology
- Tanima, PhD student, Anthropology
- Sneha Annavarapu, PhD student, Sociology
- Abhishek Bhattacharyya, Phd Student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations and Anthropology
- Tejas Parasher, PhD student, Political Science
- Jenisha Borah, PhD student, Cinema and Media Studies.
- Suchismita Das, PhD student, Anthropology
- Vidura Jang Bahadur, MFA student, Visual Art
- Mannat Johal, PhD student, Anthropology
- Shefali Jha, PhD student, Anthropology
- Sanjukta Poddar, PhD student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Aditi Das, PhD student, Social Service Administration
- Joya John, PhD student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Marc Kelly, PhD student, Anthropology
- Eleonore Rimbault, PhD student, Anthropology
- Eric Powell, PhD student, English
- Patrick Lewis, PhD student, Anthropology
- Romit Chakraborty, PhD student, Chemistry
- Gautham Reddy, PhD student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Amanda Shubert, PhD student, English
- Peter McDonald, PhD student, English
- Hannah Chazin, PhD student, Anthropology
- Jahnabi Barooah, PhD student, Divinity
- Margherita Trento, PhD student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Peter Malonis, PhD student, Neuroscience
- Zoya Sameen, PhD student, History
- Sharvari Sastry, PhD student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Andrew Messamore, MA student, Social Sciences Division
- Thomas Newbold, PhD student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Eduardo L. Acosta, PhD student, South Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Uday Jain, PhD student, Committee on Social Thought
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February 17, 2016
Contact Name: Jeff Martin, Director, Communications & Public Affairs
Contact Email: jmartin@americananthro.org
Contact Phone: 571-483-1163
Taking a Stand for Academic Freedom in India
The American Anthropological Association, an organization of scholars, students, and practitioners based in the U.S. and beyond, stands in solidarity with faculty and students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in protesting the Indian state’s actions against the freedom to debate and dissent on campus.
The Indian state’s decision to arrest the president of the JNU Students Union, Kanhaiya Kumar, on sedition charges and to bring the full force of the Delhi police on campus runs counter to a democratic commitment to academic freedom. Debate and dissent are hallmarks of life on the JNU campus in and out of the classroom. Indeed, all institutions of higher learning uphold and cherish the goal of education to question and expand the frontiers of knowledge.
We support the JNU students and faculty for protesting the application of colonial-era law with dignity, speeches and peaceful discussions. In solidarity with their students, the JNU faculty have suspended regular classes and are holding public lectures on the place of the university in society. This spirit of engagement, the JNU students and faculty have shown us, is the heart and soul of academic institutions.
The AAA joins the voices from India and beyond, and respectfully requests that the Indian state withdraw its sedition charges, release all arrested students and faculty, retreat from its hasty sweep of force, and restore normalcy to the self-governing campus.
We urge that on February 18, World Anthropology Day, anthropologists #standwithJNU and publicly engage on democracy and education.
- AAA - -
Founded in 1902, the American Anthropological Association, with more than 10,000 members, is the world’s largest professional organization of anthropologists. The Association is dedicated to advancing human understanding and tackling the world’s most pressing problems.
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[17 February 2016]
Statement of Solidarity for Academic Freedom in India -StandWithJNU
We, the undersigned at Syracuse University, Colgate University, and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, are in solidarity with our comrades at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), India against the ongoing anti-democratic actions by the Indian state. We demand an immediate end to the police action against students on campus, and withdrawal of all charges against Kanhaiya Kumar, President of the JNU Students’ Union. We further demand that the Central Government put an immediate end to its prejudiced persecution of student activists on campuses across the country.
We strongly believe that the charge of sedition against Kanhaiya Kumar follows spurious claims. This arrest is an excuse for the state to root out dissenting voices on JNU campus, a move towards converting educational institutions like JNU into an arm of the authoritarian state. Attempts of a similar nature have been witnessed recently at other Indian educational institutions such as Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) and Hyderabad University. The growing threat to academic freedom posed by the current political climate is transnational, and extends beyond India to other parts of the world—it is a threat we face here in the United States, too.
For any word or action to qualify as being “seditious†under Indian law, it has to directly issue a call to violence. This was not the nature of the protest held by JNU students against the judicial killing of Afzal Guru, who was convicted of an attack on the Indian parliament. The peaceful protest held on February 9 on campus was not unlike other protests convened at the university over the last several decades. Dissent is an essential part of a healthy democracy. We therefore strongly condemn the Indian government’s response to the students’ protests and demand that the state refrain from authoritarian behaviour. In this spirit, we urge the Vice Chancellor of JNU to protect members of the university community and safeguard their democratic rights.
1. Natasha S.K., Social Science, Syracuse University2. Taveeshi Singh, Social Science, Syracuse University3. Mitul Baruah, Geography, Syracuse University4. Sean Wang, Geography, Syracuse University5. Miguel Contreras, Geography, Syracuse University6. Manuela Ruiz Reyes, Geography, Syracuse University7. Carolina Arango-Vargas, Anthropology, Syracuse University8. Tina Catania, Geography, Syracuse University9. Linh Khanh Nguyen, Anthropology, Syracuse University10. Jon Erickson, Geography, Syracuse University11. Tom Perreault, Geography, Syracuse University12. Jessie Speer, Geography, Syracuse University13. Sravani Biswas, History, Syracuse University14. Don Mitchell, Geography, Syracuse University15. Tod Rutherford, Geography, Syracuse University16. Jacquelyn Micieli Voutsinas, Geography, Syracuse University17. Sturdy Knight, Information Studies, Syracuse University18. Jenna Sikka, Sociology, Syracuse University19. Jaisang Sun, Social Science, Syracuse University20. Madhura Lohokare, Anthropology, Syracuse University21. Brian Dobreski, Information Studies, Syracuse University22. Sujata Bajracharya, Religion, Syracuse University23. Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Women’s and Gender Studies, Syracuse University24. Alisa Weinstein, Anthropology, Syracuse University25. Li Chen, Mass Communications, Syracuse University26. Taapsi Ramchandani, Anthropology, Syracuse University27. Laura Jaffee, Cultural Foundations of Education, Syracuse University28. Tula Goenka, Television-Radio-Film, Syracuse University29. Romita Ray, Art and Music Histories, Syracuse University30. Dorothy Kou, Sociology, Syracuse University31. Kriangsak Terrakowitkajom, Geography, Syracuse University32. Susan S. Wadley, Anthropology, Syracuse University33. Emily Mitchell-Eaton, Geography, Syracuse University34. Scarlett Rebman, History, Syracuse University35. Matt Huber, Geography, Syracuse University36. Brian Hennigan, Geography, Syracuse University37. Parvathy Binoy, Geography, Syracuse University38. Liz Mount, Sociology, Syracuse University39. Himika Bhattacharya, Women’s & Gender Studies, Syracuse University40. John Western, Geography, Syracuse University41. Vani Kannan, Composition and Cultural Rhetoric, Syracuse University42. Ani Maitra, Film and Media Studies, Colgate University43. Diane Swords, Cultural Foundations of Education, Syracuse University44. Alejandro Camargo, Geography, Syracuse University45. Cecilia Van Hollen, Anthropology, Syracuse University46. Alexandra Jebbia, Documentary Film & History, Syracuse University47. David Gustavsen, English, Syracuse University48. Michael Gill, Cultural Foundations of Education, Syracuse University49. Tiago Teixeira, Geography, Syracuse University50. Nimanthi Rajasingham, English, Colgate University51. Kimberly E. Powell, Women’s & Gender Studies, Syracuse University52. Sharon Moran, Environmental Studies, SUNY-ESF53. Adam Fix, Environmental Studies, SUNY-ESF54. Alvaro A. Salas, Public Administration, Syracuse University55. Diane R. Wiener, Division of Student Affairs - Disability Cultural Center, Syracuse University56. Brett Keegan, Composition and Cultural Rhetoric, Syracuse University57. Jyoti G. Balachandran, History, Colgate University58. Barbara L. Regenspan, Educational Studies, Colgate University59. Deborah J. Knuth Klenck, English, Colgate University60. Suzanne B. Spring, Writing & Rhetoric, Colgate University61. Cristina Serna, Women’s Studies, Colgate University62. Joel Bordeaux, Religion, Colgate University63. Mark Stern, Educational Studies, Colgate University64. Susan Thomson, Peace and Conflict Studies, Colgate University
[ SEE ALSO THE FOLLOWING RELEVANT MATERIAL:
If anti-national means this, God save our country
Kanhaiya Kumar , the JNU students’ union president, addressed a gathering on the campus on Thursday evening. The following day, Kumar was arrested on the charge of sedition for taking part in a march on Tuesday where anti-India slogans were raised.
The following is the near-complete Hindi speech Kumar delivered on Thursday, translated by JP Yadav of The Telegraph from a recording uploaded on YouTube. The recording does not feature the beginning of the speech. Other than that, the translation below reproduces the speech in full.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1160216/jsp/frontpage/story_69576.jsp
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Be Warned, the Assault on JNU is Part of a Pattern
by Romila Thapar
http://thewire.in/2016/02/16/be-warned-the-assault-on-jnu-is-part-of-a-pattern-21795/
Arrest of Kanhaiya Kumar : A Short Summary of the law of Sedition in India
http://kafila.org/2016/02/12/arrest-of-kanhaiya-kumar-a-short-summary-of-the-law-of-sedition-in-india/
Jeremiah Wright’s prayer beads by Jawed Naqvi
http://www.dawn.com/news/1239770/jeremiah-wrights-prayer-book
Arrest of Kanhaiya Kumar: Human chain on JNU campus as teachers demand ‘arbitrary charges’ be dropped
http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/arrest-of-kanhaiya-kumar-human-chain-on-jnu-campus-as-teachers-demand-arbitrary-charges-be-dropped/
Arrests of JNU Students Condemned (statement by CPI-M)
http://cpim.org/pressbriefs/arrests-jnu-students-condemned
Hooliganism In Court (statement by CPI-M)
http://cpim.org/pressbriefs/hooliganism-court
Stand With JNU
https://standwithjnu.wordpress.com/ ]
