New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to direct the AAP government to grant sanction for prosecution of former JNU students' union president Kanhaiya Kumar in a sedition case.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar said it cannot pass any direction in this regard and it is for the Delhi government to decide as per existing rules, policy, law and facts of that case on whether to grant approval for prosecution.

The court, while disposing of the petition, said it appeared that the petitioner, former BJP MLA Nand Kishor Garg, has some personal interest in the FIR.

The plea has sought issuance of guidelines "for expeditious disposal of criminal cases of serious nature where there is involvement of the influential persons as accused".

On this, the court said it sees no reason to direct the government for such guidelines over and above the existing law. It said there are adequate number of judgements rendered by the various courts on this.

The petition, filed through advocate Shashank Deo Sudhi, alleged that Kumar's case highlights the lackadaisical approach of the government as it has "failed" to grant the sanction letter which is required prior to taking cognisance of the charge sheet.

The police, on January 14, had filed a charge sheet in the court against Kumar and others, including former JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, saying they were leading a procession and supported seditious slogans raised in the university campus during an event on February 9, 2016.

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Shimla (PTI): One person has been arrested for allegedly killing a 19-year-old girl by slitting her throat in Himachal Pradesh's Mandi district, police said on Monday.

According to police, the incident occurred on Monday morning near the Gopalpur area, when the girl, identified as Siya Guleria, was on her way to college.

At that time, two unidentified assailants, riding on a bike, intercepted her and brutally assaulted her with a sharp weapon and slit her throat.

While the girl succumbed to injuries on the spot, the accused fled.

Police reached the spot as soon as they received the information and recovered the body. In the meantime, locals found the 36-year-old suspect in nearby fields where he was hiding.

The villagers also recovered the weapon used in the murder and immediately informed the police.

The situation got tense as locals who caught the culprit demanded that the accused be hanged, while the police team took him into custody and assured strict action against him.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Mandi, Vinod Kumar, said that a case of Murder has been registered.

The accused, identified as Vikas, has been arrested. Further investigation is underway, the SP said.

Several injury marks were found on the girl's body, and the forensic teams have taken the samples. The body would be handed over to the family members after conducting a postmortem at Nerchowk Medical College, he added.

Expressing deep anguish and strong condemnation over the brutal murder, Governor Kavinder Gupta termed it as "heinous, inhuman and deeply disturbing".

He said that such acts of violence are unacceptable in a civilised society and must be dealt with utmost severity.

The Governor spoke with the Director General of Police (DGP) and took a detailed report of the incident. He directed the police authorities to ensure strict and swift action against the culprit and to bring the guilty to justice at the earliest.

He also emphasised the need for continued vigilance and collective efforts to ensure the safety and security of citizens, especially women, according to a statement issued here.

Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur, who met the family members of the victim on Monday, said that there are allegations that the accused was involved in drugs, and this aspect should also be probed. He demanded strict and fast action in the case.

He said that the family members feel that the condition of the road near their house was not good, and had the road been good, the girl would not have had to walk.