Delhi HC sets aside penalty imposed on Kanhaiya by JNU, says order illegal

The Delhi High Court today termed "illegal, irrational and unsustainable" an order of JNU's appellate authority holding its former students union president Kanhaiya Kumar guilty of indiscipline and imposing a penalty on him in connection with a 2016 incident in which alleged anti-India slogans were raised at an event.

Justice Siddharth Mridul set aside the July 4 office order of the varsity and said the court was of the prima-facie view that the decision was "unsustainable on innumerable counts", after which the counsel for the varsity submitted that they are recalling the decision.

The court remanded the matter back to the appellate authority with a direction to conduct 'de novo' (afresh) proceedings in accordance with the law.

The court listed for August 16 a similar plea by JNU student Umar Khalid, who was rusticated and slapped with a fine of Rs 20,000 in connection with the 2016 incident, as no time was left today to hear the matter.

The JNU counsel said that no coercive steps will be taken against Khalid and some other students, who have also moved the court against the penalty imposed on them by the varsity.

The judge, in his order, said, "I am of the considered view that the impugned office order suffers from vice of illegality, irrationality and procedural impropriety.

"Although the order purports to impose only a fine of Rs 10,000 on the petitioner (Kumar), the action against him constitutes a disciplinary action entailing serious civil consequences for him. In my view, therefore, prima facie the office order of July 4 is unsustainable on innumerable counts."