Chandrashekhar Prasad

Chandrashekhar Prasad
Born(1964-09-20)20 September 1964
Siwan, Bihar, India
Died31 March 1997(1997-03-31) (aged 32)
Siwan, Bihar, India
Cause of deathAssassination
EducationSainik School, Tilaiya
Patna University
Jawaharlal Nehru University
Occupation(s)Activist
Student
OrganizationAll India Students Association (AISA)
Political partyCommunist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation
MotherKaushalya Devi

Chandrashekar Prasad (20 September 1964 – 31 March 1997),[1] popularly known as Chandu[2] and Comrade Chandrashekhar[3] was a student leader and later an activist affiliated to the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation.[4] He graduated from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, and served as the president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union for two terms.[1][5] Prasad played a key role in the development of All India Students Association.[5]

On 31 March 1997, he was assassinated by sharpshooters allegedly in the employ of Mohammad Shahabuddin of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, while addressing street corner meetings in the district town of Siwan, Bihar in support of a strike.[6] His assassination led to remarkable student protests across India.[5] In 2012, four people were convicted of his murder and life sentences were awarded to each of them; all the convicted were former members of the Janata Dal (later split into Janata Dal (United) and Rashtriya Janata Dal).[7][8]

  1. ^ a b Kant, Krishna (1 April 2017). "The Gun That Killed JNU's Chandrashekhar 20 Years Ago Was 'Secular'". The Wire (India). Archived from the original on 4 May 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Interview: 'Shahabuddin is not alone when it comes to impunity enjoyed by the powerful'". Scroll.in. Archived from the original on 27 September 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  4. ^ "Before Kanhaiya Came 'Chandu': A JNU President Killed 19 Years Ago". The Quint. 14 May 2016. Archived from the original on 11 September 2016. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
  5. ^ a b c Purkayastha, Parbina (10 September 2016). "After elections, JNU students to raise voice against RJD MP Shahabuddin's bail". India Today. Archived from the original on 16 August 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  6. ^ "Three sentenced to life in Chandrasekhar murder case". The Hindu. 25 March 2012. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 27 February 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  7. ^ Karmakar, Debashish (10 May 2019). "Chandrashekhar murder case: Patna: HC upholds life imprisonment of four in former JNUSU president Chandrashekhar murder case | Patna News - Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 7 February 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  8. ^ "JNU vandalised". Tribune India. 7 January 2020. Archived from the original on 7 January 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.