The Congress on Thursday appointed Kanhaiya Kumar the in-charge of the National Students Union of India (NSUI), the party's students' wing. Kumar, a prominent leader known for his passionate speeches and hailing from the Hindi heartland, has been chosen to lead the student wing of Congress in the upcoming general elections next year.
A letter signed by Congress General Secretary K C Venugopal stated, "With immediate effect, the honourable Congress President (Mallikarjun Kharge) has appointed Shri Kanhaiya Kumar as the AICC in-charge of the National Students Union of India (NSUI)."
The NSUI, founded on April 9, 1971, serves as the student wing of the Congress party. The NSUI was set up by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by merging the Kerala Students' Union and the West Bengal State Chhatra Parishad, forming a national organization for students. Currently, the organization is headed by Neeraj Kunadan.
Kanhaiya Kumar, the former JNU Student Union President, made headlines in 2021 when he joined the Congress party after leaving the Communist Party of India. Notably, Kumar had previously participated in the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi, where he walked the entire distance from Kanyakumari to Kashmir.
Upon joining the party, Kumar expressed his reasons for aligning with Congress, stating that he sees it not merely as a political party but as an embodiment of an idea. He highlighted the fact that Congress is the oldest and most democratic party in the country, emphasizing the importance of its democratic principles. Kumar also pointed out that he is not alone in his belief that the nation cannot thrive without the presence of the Congress party.
Kanhaiya Kumar first came to the limelight when he was arrested in February 2016 by the Delhi Police on charges of sedition for an event in JNU. Opposition parties and JNU students had reacted sharply to the arrest of Kanhaiya Kumar then. JNU students even went on a strike to protest against the arrest of the JNU Students' Union president.