After Jignesh Mevani, JNU student leader Umar Khalid receives death threats, files police complaint

Jignesh Mewani and Umar Khalid are under scanner in connection with their alleged role in the Bhima-Koregaon caste violence.

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NEW DELHI: Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student leader Umar Khalid has alleged receiving death threats from fugitive gangster Ravi Pujari. He has also filed a complaint in this connection and asked for police protection.

The controversial JNU student leader also took to Twitter and tweeted, "Filed a complaint with @DelhiPolice regarding Ravi Pujari's death threat to Jignesh and me. He said that I am on his HIT LIST! I have asked for police protection, given the fact that this is the same person who had previously also issued similar threats of killing me in Feb 2016 (sic)." 

A Delhi Police officer confirmed that Khalid had filed a complaint in this regard and the investigation is underway.

The student leader said that he was informed by Vadgam MLA Jignesh Mevani about the threats and that he has not received any call himself till now.

"Mevani has been receiving death threats for the last two-three days. In one of the calls he received, the caller had mentioned my name too. He had mentioned that if we don't stop giving speeches we would be killed,'' he alleged.

Third death threat to Jignesh in the last 3 days. This time, the person threatening to kill Jignesh mentions that I am also on his list. Death threats to journalist, activist & any critic of the govt is now becoming the norm. This is sinister. https://t.co/snjJoGCy68

— Umar Khalid (@UmarKhalidJNU) June 8, 2018

"Mevani informed me and I approached the police. A case has been registered and they said that they will do a threat assessment and take a call on providing police protection," Khalid was quoted as saying by PTI.

Mevani had on Friday alleged that he has received death threats from a caller who identified himself as gangster Ravi Pujari. When asked whether the calls were being received in relation to the arrests made by the Pune Police on June 6 in connection with the Bhima-Koregaon violence, he said, "I am not aware about the context. Pujari has not mentioned that he was calling in that context. I don't feel it is a coincidence that the calls (to Mevani) started coming from that day (the arrests were made)."

''Elgar Parishad'', organised to commemorate 200 years of the Koregaon-Bhima battle, was held on December 31 at Shaniwarwada. It was attended by Mevani, Khalid along with Rohit Vemula's mother Radhika Vemula and Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh President Prakash Ambedkar.

In 2016, Khalid's father Syed Qasim Illyas Rasool had filed a police complaint, claiming that he has received a phone call "threatening to kill" his son if he doesn't leave the country.

This incident had happened when the police was looking for Khalid in connection with the sedition case filed against him, former JNU students' union president Kanhaiya Kumar, and Anirban Bhattacharya for allegedly organising an event against the hanging of 2001 Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, who was hanged in 2013.

(With PTI inputs)