Sedition row: JNU student Ashutosh questioned for second time

New Delhi: JNU student Ashutosh Kumar on Sunday joined investigation into the sedition case for the second time, with investigators, including sleuths of Delhi Police's Special Cell, questioning him together with Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya in a south Delhi police station.

Ashutosh arrived in the RK Puram police station around 12 PM, following which he was questioned for about eight hours by two teams of south district and some officers of Delhi Police's counter-terrorism unit Special Cell, a police source said.

Ashutosh was questioned along with JNU students Khalid and Anirban at the same police station on Saturday. Most of their queries revolved around their role as organisers of the February 9 event on the varsity's campus during which anti-national slogans were allegedly raised.

Ashutosh, who is arrested JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar's predecessor, was allowed to leave after questioning. The investigators have asked him to join the probe on Monday again.

On Monday, all of them are likely to be interrogated by Special Cell to which the case has now been transferred, the source said.

Ashutosh was one of the six students wanted by the police after the arrest of student leader Kanhaiya Kumar in connection with a case of sedition and criminal conspiracy over the controversial event held to protest the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru.

Khalid, Anirban, Ashutosh and two others had resurfaced in the varsity's campus on February 21, following which Khalid and Anirban surrendered but the others refused.

While Khalid and Anirban were taken into police custody, the others wrote to the police asking them to come and arrest them, giving all necessary details about themselves.

Jawaharlal Nehru University Student's Union (JNUSU) is planning to approach the Prime Minister's Office, Union Home Minister and National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to raise their concerns about the way the government has been dealing with recent controversy in the university.

Students are also organising a day-long sit-in dharna in front of the administration block in JNU on February 29 demanding the removal of the Registrar Bhupinder Zutshi, who, the students allege, did not handle the February 9 matter well.