Polluted Minds

One should remember that India never waged a war on Pakistan. It only defended itself every time. Even if we go by Gurmehar’s logic of having peace with Pakistan then we have to give Kashmir to them. But will it guarantee peace in the long run? Not at all. Pakistan will increase its demand to give it Punjab and then it will go for Himachal and the list will continue and a day will come when Pakistan will gobble our nation with no sight of that elusive peace we all seek. Bleeding India with thousand cuts is the state policy of Pakistan

- Nilabh Krishna

Nearly a year ago, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi had turned into the centre of political slugfest, with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) being accused of suppressing dissent. Similar to Kanhaiya Kumar, who gained prominence after JNU row, the student fraternity has now found a new face – Gurmehar Kaur. The 20-year-old daughter of Kargil martyr has emerged at the centre of controversy emanating from Ramjas College. A day after the college administration cancelled a programme where JNU leader and sedition-accused Umar Khalid was scheduled to speak, Gurmehar took to social media to express her dissent.

In a series of Facebook posts, she uploaded her photograph carrying a placard which said, “I am a student of Delhi University. I am not afraid of ABVP. I am not alone. Every student of India is with me.” In her subsequent post, Gurmehar revealed that she is the daughter of a Kargil martyr. She further said, “Pakistan did not kill my dad. War did.” With this she stirred the hornets nest and whole political arena of Lutyens Delhi went into tizzy. Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu backed ABVP, stating that it is a nationalist organisation. Hitting out at the student fraternity who have rose in protest, Naidu said, “Right to freedom does not give you the right to offend. Freedom does not mean you can abuse your own motherland, of advocate its disintegration. Freedom of speech does not give you the right to advocate the freedom of Jammu & Kashmir.”