Why it's unfair to pit the Armed Forces against JNU

All Indians were moved by the tragic incident of 3 February when 10 brave soldiers were martyred after a massive avalanche struck their post at the Siachen glacier. Earlier, India-Pakistan relations hit a low when Pakistan-backed terrorists attacked the Pathankot airbase on 2 January. Terrorists struck again on 20 February at Pampore near Srinagar, where a young Army Captain Pawan Kumar was martyred among others. Kumar’s father had said “I had only one child; I gave him to the Army, to the nation. No father can be prouder”. The strong backing of the country and the media had raised sentiments that were pro-martyrs and anti-Pakistan. In this background, there was an event at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on 9 February which marked the third anniversary of the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru.

A group of students organised a ‘cultural evening’ against the ‘judicial killing of Afzal Guru and Maqbool Bhatt’ and ‘solidarity with Kashmiri people for their democratic right to self-determination’. The event was attended by students from within and outside the JNU campus. The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) had sensed this and complained to the administration in advance, and permission for the event had been revoked. However, organisers went ahead anyway. Most of them were former members of the ultra-left Democratic Students Union (DSU) who organised the event. Slogans like 'Bharat ki barbaadi' to 'Afzal Guru amar rahe' were allegedly chanted. ‘Pakistan Zindabad, India Murdabad’ and ‘Ek Afzal Maroge, Har Ghar Se Afzal Niklega’ were heard. Some feel it has become fashionable to support anything which is anti-India, the more outrageous, illogical and offensive, the cooler. There are others who call them the 'Leftist-e-Taliban' brigade.

The issue has got politically charged. Students like Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya were charged with sedition. BJP and Delhi Police have defended the strong action taken, while Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, Delhi CM Kejriwal and CPM’s Sitaram Yechury paid visits to JNU to score political points. Left-wing, Muslim and Dalit vote-banks appear to be targeted. It is for the courts to ascertain and decide the legal aspects and the apportion of blame, if any. It is clear that the acts were by a handful of politically active students. The administration had taken timely corrective action. Permission for the event had been denied. Police was already on the campus. Most students disassociated themselves with the anti-India slogans. In that context, it is unfair to paint the whole institution in red.

India’s prestigious National Defence Academy (NDA) is affiliated to JNU for academic degrees. Their motto has been inspired by a verse from Bhagavat Gita: Karmanevadhikaraste ma phaleshu kadachana (Your duty is action, with no eye on the fruits it will bring). 'Service Before Self' was later translated as 'Seva Parmo Dharm'. The NDA batch passing out in June 1974 was the first to get a JNU graduation. De-facto most of the current officer cadre of the Armed Forces have a JNU degree. Also affiliated are many other Defence institutions and colleges, including College Military of Engineering Pune and EME college Secundrabad. Military JNU degree holders have made great sacrifice and brought India glory. They include Param Vir Chakra Manoj Pandey, Ashok Chakra major Sandeep Unnikrishnan and Olympian Colonel Rajyavardhan Rathore. Similarly, JNU has had a high academic and research standing. Its alumni include senior politicians and bureaucrats. 

Traditionally, there has been a strong prevalence of left-centric politics on its campus. In October 2008, Supreme Court had stayed the JNU students' union polls not compliance with Lyngdoh committee norms. In April 2000, two army officers protested against an Indo-Pak mushaira at JNU campus where anti-war poems were recited by two Pakistani poets. In 2010, a meeting was allegedly organised by some JNU students to oppose operations against Maoists after the killing of 76 CRPF personnel in Dantewada, Chhattisgarh. They allegedly shouted slogans like 'India murdabad, Maovad zindabad'.

But the Indian Armed Forces have nothing to do with the student politics. Those in uniform are fighting to defend the integrity of the nation. Some are hurt that a university that gives them their educational qualification permits "anti-India, pro-Pakistan slogans". An ex-Servicemen delegation met the JNU Vice Chancellor and proposed measures to instil patriotism. They suggested that fighter aircraft and tanks could be displayed at vantage points. A ‘hut of remembrance’ for the ex-JNU martyrs could be built with support of ex-servicemen, they suggested.

Concerned by the 'anti-national' slogans within JNU, ex-servicemen of the 54^th NDA course were keen to return their degrees to an institution that they otherwise respect. There was a proposal earlier to affiliate the NDA to Pune University. NDA is now looking forward to migrate to the upcoming Indian National Defence University (INDU) at Binola in Gurgaon which will be operational by 2017.

All countries take pride in instilling patriotic spirit among the youth. Even the Constitution of India puts limits to free speech. However, we need to demonise anti-national slogans and not institutions. And it's unfair to pit the Armed Forces against the JNU institution.

The author is a retired Air Marshal of the Indian Air Force. Views expressed are the author's own.