What the Judge Said While Granting Interim Bail to Kanhaiya Kumar

Delhi HC has granted bail to Kanhaiya Kumar after 22 days. But the order has some scathing observations.

Kanhaiya Kumar, the President of the Jawaharlal Nehru University’s Students’ Union (JNUSU) has been granted interim bail after 22 days in jail. But Justice Pratibha Rani made some scathing observations against Kanhaiya in the bail order.

Apart from setting “conservative” conditions for the interim bail granted for six months, subject to the outcome of the investigation, Rani made comments that are worth looking into to understand the court’s perspective.

In the order, the Judge said Kanhaiya is expected to take it upon himself to “cure” the “infection” that anti-national students are “suffering” from, before it turns into an “epidemic”.

The order starts with the quote a patriotic song from the Bollywood film Upkaar to drive home a point that all is not well at the campus.

Read on.

The Bail Order Says

• As president of JNUSU, the petitioner was supposed to be responsible for any anti-national event organised in the campus. The kind of slogans raised may have demoralising effect on the family of martyrs who returned in home in coffins draped in tricolour.
  
• The thoughts reflected in some of the slogans raised by these students cannot be claimed to be protected as fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression. I consider this as a kind of infection from which such students are suffering which needs to be controlled/cured before it becomes an epidemic.
  
• During the period spent by petitioner in judicial custody, he might have introspected about the events that had taken place. To enable him to remain in the mainstream, at present I am inclined to provide conservative method of treatment.
  

• The reason behind anti-national views in the mind of students who found by them but remedial steps are also required to be taken in this regard by those managing the affairs of JNU so that there is no recurrence of such incidents.
  
• Persons enjoy the freedom to raise such slogans in the comfort of University campus but without realising that they are in safe environment, our forces are there at battlefield situated at the highest altitude of the world where even oxygen is so scarce that those who are shouting anti-national slogans holding posters of Afzal Guru and Maqbool Bhatt close to their chest honouring martyrdom, may not be able to withstand those conditions for an hour even.
  

Bail Conditions

• The time is ripe that while giving some concession to the petitioner, he can be required to furnish an undertaking to the effect that he will not participate actively or passively in any activity which maybe termed as anti-national.
  
• Apart from that, President of JNUSU, he will make all the efforts within his power to control anti-national activities in campus.
  
• His surety should also be either a member of faculty or a person related to the petitioner in the manner that he can exercise control over the petitioner not only with respect to appearance before the court but also to ensure that his thoughts and energy are channelised in constructive manner.
  
• The petitioner is granted interim bail for a period of six months on his furnishing personal bond in the sum of Rs 10,000 and an undertaking on above lines, with one surety who should preferably be a faculty member of JNU, to satisfaction of learned concerned Metropolitan Magistrate/Link Metropolitan Magistrate, with the condition that he shall not leave the country without the permission of Court.
  
• The surety shall also furnish an undertaking on the lines similar to that of the petitioner.