This Round Goes Firmly To Kanhaiya Kumar: Shiv Sena Weighs In

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena, a member of the national coalition government, has publicly shared its dissatisfaction with the handling of the case of Kanhaiya Kumar, the student who was arrested on charges of sedition, warning that "It's time to think about why so many Kanhaiyas are being born" and "if the disappointment of the youth keeps growing, there will be 'blasts' within the country even without Pakistani terrorists".

Mr Kumar, a student leader at the Jawaharlal Nehru University or JNU in Delhi, was released on bail last week after spending nearly 21 days in jail for allegedly making anti-India remarks at an event that was critical of the government and questioned the execution three years ago of Afzal Guru, convicted for an attack on parliament in 2001. The 28-year-old student's arrest forged international headlines and forced the government to counter accusations of a heavy-handed attempt to crush dissent and of successive assaults on freedom of speech at universities.

"Is it true that had Kanhaiya not got bail, it would have become a problem for the government?" asked the Sena in an editorial in its weekly magazine, referring to the embarrassment for the government after the revelation that videos of the student's allegedly seditious speech were doctored.

"The mood of the nation is rapidly changing," warned the editorial about the elections that start next month in states like Kerala, Bengal and Tamil Nadu, all of which have non- BJP governments.

The Sena co-governs Maharashtra with the BJP, but their partnership at the state and national level is a fractious one,  with the Sena frequently ticking off not just the government but the Prime Minister in its magazine on a retinue of issues including his surprise visit to Pakistan to see his counterpart Nawaz Sharif a few months ago.