Fresh sedition case against Kanhaiya Kumar, hearing on March 28

March 19, 2016

Meerut, Mar 19: There are more legal troubles in the offing for Jawaharlal University Students' Union (JNUSU) president Kanhaiya Kumar, who is currently out on interim bail.

A Bajrang Dal activist from Bulanadshahr has filed a fresh case of sedition against Kumar for allegedly disrespecting the Indian armed forces. The court on Friday evening set March 28 as the first date of the hearing.

Hemant Singh, the right-wing activist who filed the plea, told TOI, "On International Women's Day, JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar made some highly insensitive remarks against the brave soldiers of the Indian Army. In an attempt to vilify the forces, he claimed that our soldiers rape women and commit atrocities in Kashmir and the North East. To protest against this anti-national statement by Kumar, we had gone to the Bulandshahr police station to file a complaint against him. However, the cops refused to even take our complaint. We had no option but to go to the court."

He added saying, "On Friday, we approached the court of the chief judicial magistrate of Bulandshahr. The CJM was not present but additional CJM Bharat Singh Yadav was present. We filed our case under section 124-A (sedition) and 153-B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The court has asked me to be present on March 28 and my statement will be recorded. In addition to that, I have also submitted video clips from television channels of Kanhaiya Kumar making all those false claims."

Addressing students at a women's day march earlier this month, Kumar had said, "No matter how much you try to stop us, we will speak up against human rights violations. We will raise our voice against AFSPA. While we have a lot of respect for our soldiers, we will still talk about the fact that in Kashmir women are raped by security personnel."

He then added saying, "During war in Rwanda 1000 women were raped. In Africa during the ethnic conflict, when military attacks other group firstly their women were raped. You take example of Gujarat, women were not just killed but were raped first."

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Over 58 lakh names dropped from draft voter list in Bengal ahead of polls

News Network

December 16,2025

The deletion of over 58 lakh names from West Bengal’s draft electoral rolls following a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has sparked widespread concern and is likely to deepen political tensions in the poll-bound state.

According to the Election Commission, the revision exercise has identified 24 lakh voters as deceased, 19 lakh as relocated, 12 lakh as missing, and 1.3 lakh as duplicate entries. The draft list, published after the completion of the first phase of SIR, aims to remove errors and duplication from the electoral rolls.

However, the scale of deletions has raised fears that a large number of eligible voters may have been wrongly excluded. The Election Commission has said that individuals whose names are missing can file objections and seek corrections. The final voter list is scheduled to be published in February next year, after which the Assembly election announcement is expected. Notably, the last Special Intensive Revision in Bengal was conducted in 2002.

The development has intensified the political row over the SIR process. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress have strongly opposed the exercise, accusing the Centre and the Election Commission of attempting to disenfranchise lakhs of voters ahead of the elections.

Addressing a rally in Krishnanagar earlier this month, Banerjee urged people to protest if their names were removed from the voter list, alleging intimidation during elections and warning of serious consequences if voting rights were taken away.

The BJP, meanwhile, has defended the revision and accused the Trinamool Congress of politicising the issue to protect what it claims is an illegal voter base. Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari alleged that the ruling party fears losing power due to the removal of deceased, fake, and illegal voters.

The controversy comes amid earlier allegations by the Trinamool Congress that excessive work pressure during the SIR led to the deaths by suicide of some Booth Level Officers (BLOs), for which the party blamed the Election Commission. With the draft list now out, another round of political confrontation appears imminent.

As objections begin to be filed, the focus will be on whether the correction mechanism is accessible, transparent, and timely—critical factors in ensuring that no eligible voter is denied their democratic right ahead of a crucial election.

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