A video of Congress leader and former student activist Kanhaiya Kumar has gone viral on social media in which he can be seen dodging questions about incarcerated activists Umar Khalid and Meeran Haider.
While speaking to the media in Bihar's Sivan, a reporter asked him a question about the two activists, to which Kumar can first be heard saying, "Does Meeran Haider belong to my party?"
When the reporter told Kumar that he is with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Kumar said: "Then why are you asking me about him?"
The reporter then told Kumar that Umar Khalid has been his friend and acquaintance in the past, to which Kumar said, "Who told you so?"
Umar Khalid and Kanhaiya Kumar were at the forefront of the protests that had rocked the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in 2016 over the death of Dalit student Rohith Vemula.
Both were also slapped with sedition in a case in which the Delhi Police claimed that the two were a part of an event to commemorate convicted terrorist Afzal Guru where 'anti-India' slogans were allegedly raised.
Jamia student Meeran Haider was arrested and charged with sedition in December 2019 amid the protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA). He was also the head of the Delhi youth wing of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).
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Several people and activists took to Twitter to call out Kumar over his "forgotten ties" with Umar Khalid.
Reacting to the video, activists and founder of United Against Hate, Nadeem Khan said that "all those incarcerated activists fighting to uphold the democracy and the Constitution are our friends."
Activist and former student of Jamia University, Safoora Zargar also took to Twitter to slam Kumar.
Several others shared old pictures of Khalid and Kumar together.
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