Bengaluru: Governor Vajubhai Vala issued a show-cause notice to University of Mysore (UoM) authorities over a placard reading “Free Kashmir” in a protest carried out inside the university campus on Wednesday, January 9 night.
University Research Scholars Association had organised a protest in the campus against violence witnessed in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). In this protest, a girl allegedly held a placard reading ‘Free Kashmir’.
The police have launched an investigation and registered an FIR at Jayalakshmipuram police station. Governor Vala has asked the university to file a report on the incident immediately.
The protesters are unaware of the identity of the woman who held the placard.
It can be recalled that a similar incident was reported in Mumbai during an anti-CAA protest organised there.
Protest organisers face sedition charges
Police Commissioner KT Balakrisha informed that a suo moto case has been filed against the organisers of the protest. They have been charged under Section 124A (sedition) and Section 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Since the police are still ascertaining the woman’s identity, the FIR names “Maridevaiah and unknown others” as the accused in the case.
However, the same quick responsiveness shown by the police in Mysuru was not displayed in another reported incident that involved BJP party workers in Bengaluru. The incident arose when BJP party workers attempted to forcibly put up a banner supporting CAA on the campus of Jyoti Nivas College. A scuffle broke out when college students, staff, and management protested against the party workers’ actions.