New Delhi: A group of former bureaucrats, academicians and police and defence officers has called the controversial JNU event a "direct attack on the judiciary and democracy" and sought President's intervention, saying if not checked at this juncture, it will become a trend.
"We were horrified by the recent developments in Jawaharlal Nehru University where certain students supported by various bodies of teachers organised an event, where they tried to glorify certain anti-national elements like Afzal Guru and Maqbool Bhat who waged a war against the nation.
"The slogans that were shouted at the venue not only glorified Afzal Guru and Pakistan, they also talked of breaking India into pieces. The slogans being raised were outright treasonous and are totally unacceptable coming from a government institution," they said in a representation to President Pranab Mukherjee.
The signatories include former Punjab DG K P S Gill, former UP DG Prakash Singh, Vice Admiral (retd) Shekhar Sinha, Air Marshal (retd) A K Mukhopadaya among others, according to a statement.
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The JNU event has not only "shocked every patriotic citizen" but has also emerged as a serious challenge to the internal security of the country, they said, adding that it was an insult to martyrs who sacrifice their lives on the border as such activities boost the morale of anti-national forces.
"This act not only threatens the national integrity, but also castes serious aspersions on Indian Judiciary... If not checked at this juncture, this will become the trend for others to violate the court judgements, which is a direct attack on the Indian judicial system of the democratic India.
"As supreme commander of our forces and the protector of the constitution of this great country we request you for initiating action against the perpetrators of anti-national activities and ensure that our higher centres of learning are free from such virus," they wrote to the President.
The government cannot be spending billions of rupees from the taxpayer's pocket to propagate anti-national activities in an institution under the garb of freedom of speech, the group has said.
