Claiming to be a “victim” of a “defamatory media trial”, Anant Prakash Narayan, a Dalit PhD scholar at JNU, who was recently debarred by the university administration in connection with the February 9 Afzal Guru event on campus, has written to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes.
In his letter to the panel, Mr. Narayan said he has been subjected to a “media trial” and has specifically named a news channel, responsible for it. He has asked the commission to take action against the channel.
Mr. Narayan, a PhD scholar at the varsity’s Centre for Law and Governance, wrote: “I would like to bring to your notice and cognizance a deeply problematic, dangerous and defamatory media trial that I have been subjected to over the last one month. I am a Dalit student and have overcome several obstacles to come to JNU to pursue higher education. I have also served as the vice-president of JNUSU in 2014-15 and in this capacity I have been a part of several initiates to ensure social inclusion and justice in JNU. Since February 9, I have been subjected to slanderous campaign specially by Zee News”.
Further explaining the “media trial” he wrote: “A group of students (of which I was not a part) organised a programme in Jawaharlal Nehru University on February 9. At the very last minute, the administration cancelled permission for this programme. Several students including myself reached the venue to protest against the cancellation. Since then, Zee News has been running a malicious campaign against me. Much like the campaign against Rohith Vemula [a Dalit scholar who committed suicide], I was called a traitor, a terrorist sympathiser and anti-national”.
The research scholar has further said that the campaign has “not just vilified” him but “put his entire life in grave danger”.
“Such campaigns which have declared myself and others as anti-nationals and traitors have encouraged lynch mobs to intimidate JNU students. I therefore appeal to you to take action against this dangerous and irresponsible media reportage, specially Zee News,” he further writes.
Mr. Narayan, along with Kanhaiya Kumar, Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar, Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya, Shweta Raj and Aishwarya Adhikari was debarred from academic activities by the Jawaharlal Nehru University high-level inquiry committee.
In the report, Mr. Narayan has been found to be present at the place where objectionable slogans were being allegedly raised at the February 9 event.
However, the report does not clarify whether he was involved in sloganeering or not.