The Quint caught up with Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya at the JNU campus. Now that they’ve been granted interim bail, we asked them about their experience in custody, how their families are dealing with the ordeal and if they think those attacking JNU have achieved what they wanted.
Both Anirban and Umar spoke of how their families suffered because of the way the media targeted them. Umar said he received a lot of support from his community despite being an atheist and Marxist. Having been persecuted in the past, they were mindful and sympathetic of what Umar was going through.
Umar also asked why he had to be more diplomatic about his opinions on Kashmir because he was a Muslim. In his view, the Kashmir issue, like the north-east, is about the state and not religion.
Both Anirban and Umar spoke of how they believe that the attack on JNU is part of a larger political project to silence dissent. The ruling party, the RSS, sections of the media and the police are actors in the “political script” that is unfolding before us. It is aimed at polarisation before the upcoming elections, as well as a larger assault on our politics. However, they feel it has only been partially successful. The support for JNU has been overwhelming.
In their time in prison, Umar and Anirban faced abuse and intimidation. But it was also a learning experience, they said. Anirban added that they befriended some guards, who said they would miss him when he left. On a rainy evening, Anirban was given a paper boat by a guard. And when he left, he was gifted a fountain pen.
Even in prison, facing abuse, they found the most underrated of virtues among their warders – decency.
(Cameraperson: Siddharth Safaya)
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