Left parties plan dharnas in State from today

Intellectuals, writers, students to hold 3-day protest against curbing rights

The Left parties and organisations have planned to stage three-day dharnas across the State from Tuesday to protest against branding them as anti-nationals and to condemn the right wing’s reported attack on the constitutional rights of citizens.

At a joint press conference in the City on Monday, CPM State secretary and former legislator G V Sreerama Reddy said Left parties such as CPI, SUCI (C), CPM, AIFB, CPI (ML) Lib have chalked out plans to stage dharnas and hold open conferences.

The Left parties will stage dharnas and organise public meetings in front of Town Hall in Bengaluru on Thursday in which intellectuals, writers, students among others would take part.

They have also planned to hold such dharnas in the districts also.

Reddy said the BJP had been trying hard to saffronise the universities and it had chosen central universities in the first phase as they directly come under its control.

Referring to the JNU row, Reddy said BJP and RSS were trying to impose their right-wing agenda in the higher education institutions. Those present at the press meet said raising slogans against communal forces does not amount to being anti-national.

They sought the intervention of the President as they no longer believe in the rule of the BJP-led NDA and demanded a ban on the ABVP as it was polarising students in university campuses on the lines of religion.

They demanded the release of students’ leader Kanhaiya Kumar, who was arrested on sedition charges, immediately.

The CPM also condemned the ABVP for its demand to arrest a few professors of Kuvempu University as they addressed students during a rally to protest the arrest of Kanhaiya Kumar recently.