Kanhaiya Kumar shown black flags in Patna

PATNA: JNU student union president Kanhaiya Kumar was shown black flags at event on Sunday here while he was in the middle of his speech. Two youngsters sitting in the audience suddenly rose waving black flags and started shouting slogans which could not be heard properly due to commotion.
In what appeared to be an irony of sorts, at the very beginning of his speech Kanhaiya said, "Ghabraiyae mat, yeh Bihar hai. Yaha joota nahi chalega (Don't worry, this is Bihar. Here, shoes aren't thrown around)," referring to such ugly incidents that greeted him at different places earlier.
The two youngsters were caught by Kanhaiya's supporters and beaten up badly. Kanhaiya asked his supporters to leave them and said that this was their way of voicing their protests. Soon they were taken out of the hall and police arrested them. Police told TOI the protesters' background could not be immediately known. However, Kanhaiya's supporters claimed they were "lumpens" of ABVP, student wing of BJP.
On second day of visit to his native state Bihar on Sunday, Kanhaiya, who was in his fourth day of hunger strike took the audience by surprise by speaking for more than one and a half hours despite not being in good health. "Doctors tell me that I have low BP. I tell them that when I will speak against PM Modi, my blood pressure will automatically rise," Kanhaiya quipped amidst applause at the very beginning.
After the first commotion, the policemen spread out among the audience and prevented what appeared to be a second commotion as well. Kanhaiya, nonetheless, didn't seem moved and welcomed people throwing questions at him in the middle of his speech.
Unidentified men wave black flags in the protest against Kanhaiya Kumar's visit in Patna on Sunday. (PTI photo)
A major part of his speech was dedicated to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Referring to him as a "jumlebaaz pradhan mantri", he reminded audience, "The PM has not fulfilled even a single promise - be it bringing back black money, providing 2 crore jobs annually or checking inflation. JNU is being targeted because it is posing uncomfortable questions to the establishment. Today's commotion is a testimony to the same." Sporting a white T-shirt with a photograph of Rohith Vemula on it, Kanhaiya demanded passage of Rohith Act.
When asked about his opinion on Afzal Guru and Umar Khalid by an audience, he replied: "We are against capital punishment but we don't support Afzal Guru. With Umar I may have ideological differences, but shouting slogans does not amount to sedition at all"
To the charge that he is being used by Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad, he said "I went to meet them not to seek ticket. I am a PhD scholar and I aspire to become a teacher, not an MP or an MLA." On the question of touching feet of Lalu, he said, "It is a common practice in Bihar to touch the feet of elders."
Police arrest a man for waving a black flag during Kanhaiya Kumar’s speech in Patna on Sunday. (PTI photo)
He also answered his opponents who question the source of funding of his visits to different parts of the country. "Mumbai's safai karamcharis have collected Rs 10,000 for the fine which JNU administration has imposed on me. This should silence such critics. If they are still not convinced, they should come and see this hall," Kanhaiya said referring to the jam-packed city's S K Memorial hall which has a seating capacity of about 2000.
He said Bihar has had a history of standing against establishment. "Be it JP's movement of the the stoppage of Advani's rath, it happened in Bihar. Once again the nation is looking up to Bihar to create a front against fascist forces," he said as the audience lustily cheered.
He made a fervent appeal to Ambedkarites and Marxists to unite. "The disciples of Golwalkar and the soldiers of RSS can survive and thrive only by creating a wedge between us. So the choice is ours," he said. Among the many things from which Kanhaiya demands "azadi" are Brahamanvaad. He clarified that his slogan is not targeted against any particular caste. "Anyone who opposes inter-caste marriages or discriminates against castes is Brahamanvaadi for me," he said.