Then and Now: Know all about former JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar

Kanhaiya Kumar, former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union president, has again grabbed headlines in the national media, not because of sedition cases but for his plans to contest elections. According to reports, the 28-year-old student leader is likely to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in 2019 on a Communist Party of India (CPI) ticket from Begusarai district, from where he belongs.

Also Read | Kanhaiya Kumar open to contest 2019 elections from Bihar's Begusarai; CPI to take final call 

Here are 10 facts about Kanhaiya Kumar

1. Born on January, 1987, Kanhaiya Kumar is a resident of Barauni, Begusarai district in Bihar.
2. Second eldest among three siblings, Kanhaiya did his schooling from RKC High School in Barauni and graduated from College of Commerce, Patna, Bihar.
3. In 2002, Kanhaiya joined the All India Student Federation (AISF), a student wing of the Communist Party of India (CPI) as a member.
4. During his stint in his college, he helped in reviving many Marxist centres of learning in his college as well as the Patna University.
5. In 2011, he came to Delhi for the first time and enrolled in JNU for PhD in African Studies at the School of International Studies.
6. In 2015, Kanhaiya became the first AISF member to become the president of the JNU students’ union, creating history altogether.
7. On February 13, 2016, Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested by the Delhi Police and slapped with sedition charges for voicing anti-national slogans in a rally, which marked the 3^rd anniversary of Afzal Guru’s hanging.
8. Following his arrest, students at JNU went on strike, and paralysed the university administration.
9. Being a great orator, Kanhaiya is quite a known figure in the campus.
10. Kanhaiya Kumar is likely to contest the upcoming LS polls in 2019 from CPI ticket from his district.