Just a day before President Ram Nath Kovind's visit to the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) for its 65th annual convocation, the Uttar Pradesh police reportedly served a notice to six students from the university who were opposing the visit.
The notice was served under Section 107 and 108 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) – that deal with apprehension of disruption of peace in an area. The notice also directed them to file bonds worth Rs 5 lakh each, and give an undertaking that they will maintain peace, reported The Times of India.
The six students in question are former AMU Students' Union (AMUSU) vice-president Mohd Nadeem Ansari, Mohd Junaid Ahmad, Adnan Aamir, Jayad Shervani, Rao Faraj Waris and Imran Khan.
Ansari, the former AMUSU VP, had allegedly advocated for a black flag welcome for the President.
Responding to the issuing of the notice, Imran Khan had told BBC Hindi:
Our opposition is not against the President. Instead, we oppose the entry of those people who have a Sangh ideology and are (probably) coming with Kovind. We will give an answer to this notice through our lawyer.Imran Khan
Students of AMU had been divided over Kovind's presence on the campus on 7 March – primarily because of the controversial comments made by him in 2010, wherein he reportedly said, “Islam and Christianity are alien to the nation”.
Opposing the President's visit, current AMUSU vice-president Sajad Subhan Rather had categorically asserted that "the president's visit is unwelcome till he does not give a public apology".
However, the students’ union president Maskoor Ahmad Usmani, in a statement to The Quint, had said that President Kovind’s visit to the university was a “matter of pride” and everyone would welcome him. However, he did warn against the presence of any “rabble-rousers” on the day of the convocation.
(Hey there, lady! What makes you laugh? Do you laugh at sexism, patriarchy, and misogyny? Do 'sanskaari' stereotypes crack you up? This Women's Day, join The Quint's Ab Laugh Naari campaign. Pick up that beer, say cheers, and send us photographs or videos of you laughing out loud at buriladki@thequint.com.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)