Parrikar on Gurmehar: I believe in freedom of expression within legal limits

The DU student was trolled after a post taking on the ABVP as well as a video message on her war and Pakistan

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Thursday said he believed in the freedom of expression within the legal ambit.

The DU student has received severe criticism for a video message on her martyred father and Pakistan (HT & PTI photos)

When asked about his opinion on DU student Gurmehar Kaur, Parrikar said: “I believe in the freedom of expression with whatever legal restrictions are there. All freedom of expression have legal limit. You cannot barge on another person’s right.”

Kaur, a student of Lady Shri Ram College, had launched a social media campaign last week against the ABVP, the students’ union body linked to the RSS, after the outfit forced the cancellation of a seminar at Delhi’s Ramjas College over the participation of a controversial JNU student Umar Khalid on February 21. Violent clashes broke out the next day as ABVP activists allegedly attacked students, teachers and journalists in the campus, triggering widespread condemnation.

Kaur, trolled for taking on the ABVP in a Facebook post that went viral, said she had received rape threats.

DU student Gurmehar Kaur was trolled after taking on the ABVP with this Facebook post. (Facebook/Gurmehar Kaur)

The 20-year-old also faced severe criticism for a video message on her father, Captain Mandeep Singh who was killed in Kashmir in 1999 during the Kargil war, and her perceptions about Pakistan and war.