Union Minister Escalates War of Words

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has issued a severe critique of veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah, labeling the 76-year-old performer a "dangerous urban Naxal" and a "subversive intellectual." The remarks follow a video released by Shah in which he openly voiced support for protesting students at Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia university.

Rijiju expressed disillusionment with the actor, stating on social media that he had misjudged Shah's political and social leanings for years. According to the senior cabinet minister, the actor's recent conduct poses a distinct challenge to the nation's democratic institutions.

"I used to respect and like Naseeruddin Shah, thinking he was just an ordinary actor. I had no idea that he was a dangerous urban Naxal, a subversive intellectual. I discovered his true character far too late," Rijiju stated.

The Catalyst: Jamia Millia Islamia Protests

The friction stems from a video published on social media platforms in which Shah criticized the central administration's approach to higher education and student advocacy. Wearing a badge bearing the phrase 'Dimagi Naxal'—a term initially coined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to describe critics with privileged educations whom the ruling party accuses of harboring Maoist sympathies—Shah challenged the government's intentions.

"I proudly declare that I am Dimagi Naxal," Shah said in the video, addressing the various labels assigned to dissenters by administration defenders. Questioning the administration's trajectory regarding youth and educational frameworks, the actor asked, "What else will you do to break the courage of our country's youth, to destroy the education system, and to put our democracy at risk?"

Drawing parallels across multiple academic institutions, Shah referenced unrest at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), before reciting lines from Bismil Azimabadi’s revolutionary poem, "Sarfaroshi ki tamanna."

Escalating Tensions on Campuses

Shah has increasingly utilized digital platforms in recent months to comment on student activism. Last week, he expressed solidarity with SRFTI students in Kolkata following campus clashes, and earlier in July, he criticized the government's handling of controversies surrounding national entrance examinations.

At Jamia Millia Islamia, the core of the ongoing student mobilization centers on the long-delayed restoration of the university's student union. Elections for the union have remained suspended since 2006 in the wake of campus disturbances, prompting students to demand a definitive timeline for polls and the formal ratification of their constitution.