Miffed With AAP Over Nod to Kanhaiya's Sedition Trial, Vishal Dadlani Reminds Party of its Principles

New Delhi: Singer and music director Vishal Dadlani on Saturday hit out at the Aam Admi Party for sanctioning the prosecution of former JNUSU president and now CPI leader Kanhaiya Kumar and nine others in a sedition case.

“AAP started out as people criticising a government that was wrong. Most AAP supporters are still those people and still do exactly the same. Some of us, at great risk,” he tweeted.

The Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP government in Delhi on Friday gave its nod to prosecute Kanhaiya, Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya and other former JNU students Mujeeb Gattoo, Khalid Bhat, former Jamia Milia Islamia students Umair Gul, scholar Basharat Ali among others on charges of sedition.

The accused allegedly led a procession and had supported the seditious slogans allegedly raised on the JNU campus during an event on February 9, 2016.

Expressing his discontent, Dadlani, who has publically supported the AAP and its principles, termed the move as “plain wrong.” He said the party’s supporters “despise the political tradition of trading right and wrong for votes/image/gain.”

That the singer, music director is miffed with the party that he campaigned for in the recently concluded Delhi Assembly elections is clearly evident as earlier in 2016, he had tweeted in support of Kanhaiya’s speech – just like party leader Arvind Kejriwal had.

“What was Kanhaiya Kumar saying before he got arrested? See for yourself. Tell me if you hear anything anti-national,” Dadlani had said. Kejriwal echoed a similar sentiment when he termed Kanhaiya’s speech as “brilliant.”

In the Delhi Assembly elections, Dadlani was the only “celebrity" in AAP’s star campaigner list and had held roadshows in Madipur, Moti Nagar and Tilak Nagar. He had also composed AAP’s campaign song for the elections.

On January 14, 2019, the police had filed a charge sheet against Kanhaiya and others in the sedition case. The Kejriwal government had decided to sit on the matter until February 20, when the sanction was officially granted, despite the Delhi police pushing for it repeatedly for over a year.

Kanhaiya Kumar on Friday “thanked” the Delhi government on the green-light and sought a speedy trial on the matter.

Meanwhile, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Saturday hit out at the Delhi government for its sanction to prosecute the former JNUSU president and nine others in connection with a sedition case, saying the Kejriwal dispensation is "no less ill-informed than the Centre" in its understanding of the sedition law.