Nobody should do anything that isn't in nation's interest: Nitish Kumar on arrest of Sharjeel Imam

Following the arrest of Sharjeel Imam, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar said that none should do anything that is not in the interest of the nation. On the issue of NRC, Kumar told media that PM Modi said there have been no talks over it. However, Kumar admitted that new questions added to the NPR are likely to create confusion.

Patna (Bihar): After the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Sharjeel Imam was arrested by a team of Delhi Police on Tuesday, Bihar Chief Minister and JD (U) leader Nitish Kumar said that nobody should do anything that is not in the interest of the nation.

"Nobody should do anything that is not in the interest of the nation. The accusations and the arrest ... The court will decide on the matter," said Kumar while speaking to the reporters.

Speaking about the National Register of Citizens (NRC), the Chie Minister said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already said that there have been no talks about it.

"We have said it earlier too. The question over NRC does not arise. The Prime Minister has also said there have been no talks over it. The National Population Register (NPR) has been there since 2011. It is not a new thing," he said.

He, however, admitted that new questions added to the NPR are likely to create confusion.

The controversial JNU student Sharjeel, who stoked controversy with his "cut off Assam from India" remark, was arrested by a team of Delhi Police from Bihar's Jehanabad on Tuesday.

Earlier on Tuesday, Jehanabad Police had detained Sharjeel's younger brother Muzammil Imam in the wee hours.

The Crime Branch of Delhi Police on Sunday booked Sharjeel for his controversial speech that he allegedly made a few days ago.

He has been slapped with charges of sedition and inciting enmity between communities under Sections 124A, 153A and 505 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

A case has also been registered against him by the Uttar Pradesh Police for his controversial speech delivered during the students' protest at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) on January 16 against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC).

A series of videos have gone viral on social media in which Sharjeel Imam is heard saying, "If we all come together, then we can separate the Northeast from India. If we cannot do it permanently, then at least for one to two months, we can do this."

"It is our responsibility to cut Assam from India. When this happens, only then the government will listen to us," he is heard saying further in the video.

(An ANI report)