A two-decade-old letter by a Jawaharlal Nehru University professor had then alleged anti-national activities by “agents of Pakistan” on the university campus.
The letter, purportedly written to the university’s registrar in February 1996, has now been made public by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) after the arrest of JNU Students’ Union president Kanhaiya Kumar.
But the authenticity of the letter could not be verified. The professor now lives in Germany. In 1996, he was an associate professor with the Department of German. In the letter, he claimed to have raised the issue in the university’s academic council meeting in December 1995, which was chaired by the then vice chancellor.
“The agents of Pakistan have become vigorously assertive on the issue of Kashmir in recent times. The valley of Kashmir, following total physical liquidation of all the non-Muslims, has practically become an all-Muslim territory. This has emboldened the agents of Pakistan on the JNU campus to intensify their vicious campaign for a full-scale secession of Kashmir from India,” the letter said.
He claimed a seminar was held in November 1995 in which a full-throated declaration was made for another partition of India. Urging immediate action by Intelligence Bureau, he had alleged that terrorists were staying as unauthorised occupants in hostels.
“According to my information, armed terrorists, staying as guests in Aravali and Gomti, were present with arms hidden on their person. Pakistani agents are brazenly endorsing the infamous 2-Nation theory of Mohammad Ali Jinnah,” the letter had said.
The professor had asked the JNU authorities to alert appropriate intelligence agencies of the Ministry of Home Affairs to constantly monitor, record and update and prepare a list of all “anti-national elements”.
Police refused to confirm the existence of the letter or comment on it. The letter has been released at a time when a sedition case has been filed leading to the arrest of three JNU students.
Published 27 February 2016, 03:37 IST