Delhi government no less ill-informed than Centre in understanding of sedition law, says P Chidambaram

In a series of tweets, Chidambaram said, "I strongly disapprove of the sanction granted to prosecute Mr Kanhaiya Kumar and others for alleged offences under sections 124A and 120B of IPC. Delhi Government is no less ill-informed than the central government in its understanding of sedition law."

The Delhi government on Friday night gave sanction to the Special cell of the Delhi police for a trial against Kanhaiya Kumar and nine others in connection with a four-year-old sedition case.

The file seeking permission of the Delhi government had been pending with the home department since May 5 last year.

On Jan 12, last year, police had sought the government's sanction just two hours before filing the chargesheet, official records show, said an Indian Express report.

In the absence of prosecution sanction, the court has been delaying taking cognizance of the chargesheet, the report added.

In the chargesheet, the police had said Kumar had supported seditious slogans during an event on Feb 9, 2017 on the JNU campus.

Other  JNU students Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya and others were also chargesheeted for shouting anti-India slogans during an event to mark the hanging of Afzal Guru in 2001 in parliament attack case.

Delhi's Home Department comes under Cabinet Minister Satyendra Jain where the file was pending from past 1 year.