NEW DELHI: Breaking her silence, Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) president Mona Das on Tuesday came out in defence of the black flag protest held during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to the campus last week, and said if present she too would have participated in it.

In her first statement since the protest, the JNUSU president gave poor health as the reason for her absence from the campus.

"I was severely unwell and suffered from incapacitating migraines and spondilitis. Due to unavoidable circumstances I could not find any written communication to this effect. I wish I had been present on November 14 to participate in the student protest unfortunately due to my illness I could not.''

Stressing that she had never consented to inviting the Prime Minister to the unveiling of the Jawaharlal Nehru statue, the JNUSU president said: "The administration's unilateral decision to invite the Prime Minister was merely conveyed at a meeting of September 14 in which I was present. There was no consultative process on the issue; consent was neither sought nor given. I am deeply disturbed that the administration time and again misinformed the students that I gave my consent, I emphatically counter any such claim.''

Noting that if the administration is free to invite people of its choices, students and the JNUSU reserve the right to protest, she further added that "under no circumstances, however honourable the guest, can an individual student be denied the right to express peaceful and democratic protest against the policies represented by a person.''

Protest

Criticising the JNUSU for not leading the protest and living up to its long tradition of holding bold protests, Mona Das said: "Had I or any other office-bearer of JNUSU who were equally in know of the visit formally informed the student community about the administration's plans to invite the Prime Minister, it might have given the students more time to mobilise more widely for a protest on the occasion.''

In response to the impeachment motion called against her at a University General Body Meeting to be held on Thursday, Mona Das said she was ready to face the motion.

While noting that any student was free to exercise the right to impeach the JNUSU president, Mona Das, however, said such a move would only go against the students' freedom to protest against anti-people policies.

Absence

"It would mean condoning the violence against peaceful protestors. Similarly, the censure motion floated by SFI-AISF against the JNUSU president is not for her absence alone, it is a condemnation of the JNUSU president for justifying the unacceptable position taken by AISF, that is for her endorsement and support of the protest against Manmohan Singh and his pro-imperialist, anti-people policies,'' she said.

Urging the student community to uphold the JNUSU legacy of challenging anti-people policies of all hues and to defend the right of students to speak out against such policies, she urged the student community to stand firmly against the impeachment and censure motion against her.

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