No violent incidents against Kashmiri students reported from States, Centre tells SC

New Delhi: The Attorney General K.K. Venugopal, appearing for the Centre informed the Supreme Court on Wednesday that not a single instance of violence has happened ever since the order was passed on February 22 asking Nodal officers in the States to ensure the safety of Kashmiri students.

The AG told a Bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Sanjiv Khanna that the Supreme Court's intervention to protect Kashmiris and minorities from mob violence in the wake of Pulwama incidents had been an effective deterrent.

The court had directed the Centre, Chief Secretaries and police chiefs of several States to protect Kashmiris and minority communities, especially students, from backlash in the aftermath of the Pulwama attack that claimed the lives of 40 CRPF personnel.

On hearing the submission by Mr. Venugopal, Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said there was no need to pass any further orders on the issue.

The court, however, asked the Centre and 10 States to file their responses in seven days, explaining the violence against Kashmiri students.

In the last hearing, the AG had told the court that the Centre had already issued advisories to the States to take necessary steps to ensure the safety of Kashmiri students and nodal officers had also been put in place.

The court had directed the chief secretaries and director generals of police (DGPs) of Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, Meghalaya, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand, and J and K were asked to take immediate steps in this regard.

Senior counsel Colin Gonsalves, appearing for advocate Tariq Adeeb brought to the notice of the court that the incidents of attack on Kashmiris was taking place and these incidents must be stopped.

The PIL by advocate Tariq Adeeb alleged that students from Kashmir Valley are being attacked at different educational institutions across the country after the Pulwama terror attack and authorities concerned should be directed to take actions to stop such assaults.

Forty CRPF personnel were killed in south Kashmir's Pulwama district on February 14, in a terror attack allegedly carried out by banned terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed

The petition gave details of attacks on people from Kashmir in different parts of the country.

The petitioner has prayed for steps to be taken to prevent such attacks, threats, social boycott, ostracism, evictions and other coercive acts committed by groups and mobs against Kashmiris and other minorities.