A majority of respondents to an instaVaani poll opposed the rally staged by some Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students to commemorate the anniversary of the hanging of Afzal Guru, a convict in the 2001 Parliament attack.

A total of 503 people in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai were asked about the 9 February rally, following which JNU Students’ Union president Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested on sedition charges.

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The poll found that 72% (363 respondents) opposed the rally in favour of a convicted terrorist; 63%, or 219 of 346 respondents who replied to a specific question, supported Kumar’s arrest on charges of sedition.

Asked whether India still needs the law against sedition, which was introduced by the British in the 19th century, 57% (158 of 279 respondents) said it was still relevant; and 75% (200 out of 265 respondents) said political parties were blowing the issue out of proportion.

[“source-Livemint”]