Sep 14, 2022: Marking activist Umar Khalid’s two years in jail
Khalid mentions the recently celebrated Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and wonders if azadi is real.
September 14, 2022, marks two years since Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) scholar and student activist Umar Khalid was imprisoned under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Khalid has been accused of starting the northeastern Delhi riots of 2020 and despite multiple appeals to the court and a lack of concrete evidence, the case continues.
Khalid was arrested along with Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, and Asif Iqbal Tanha for protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) as well as the northeast Delhi riots between February 23, 2020, to February 26, 2020, which took away 53 lives and injured hundreds.
Among the dead, 40 were Muslims and 13 were Hindus.
According to the Delhi Police charge sheet, Khalid allegedly made two speeches that “instigated” people to come on streets and block roads. This happened simultaneously during former US President Donald Trump’s visit to India in February 2020, just before the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country.
The Delhi Police alleged that Khalid was ‘part of a conspiracy to defame Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government’.
Two years of jail time can be a lonely journey. The desire to be free again can feel like a black hole especially when the question is how long.
The Wire had the opportunity to look into the mind of the political prisoner. Khalid had replied to a letter by one of his admirers Rohit Kumar, who on September 12 this year had written an open letter to the former.
With the consent of Rohit, The Wire published Khalid’s response. A letter that gives a sneak peek into what goes on in the mind of a man who has been jailed over his speeches, demanding to be treated equally, and often finds himself in dark spaces when he dwells on thoughts of freedom and a chance to breathe the air beyond the tall walls.
