Students have time and again taken to the streets to raise their voice against issues. Last year alone, we witnessed protests against fee hike in various universities, starting from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), the unconstitutional scrapping of Article 370 and the ongoing movement against CAA-NPR-NRC. It won’t be wrong to say that given the times, students are indeed the sole opposition to any oppressive policy, keeping the conscience of democratic India alive.
Student movements in India isn’t something altogether new. It can be traced back to the Independence movement, then the anti-Emergency movement and the Mandal movement for reservation. However, given the handling of such movements by the government and the violence unleased against the students in Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and most recently JNU, the student movement has only galvanised further.
Umar Khalid, who witnessed these movements as a student first and now as an activist, feels that what was once a localised movement before 2016 has now become a national movement because of the coordination between various universities. “Different universities have been attacked over the years and solidarity has emerged in a very organic way. This broader network of solidarity has given the movement a national orientation. Also, especially after the attack on JNU in 2016, which was an attempt to create a media spectacle and convince society that public education is bad and the state should not fund public education which is giving rise to 'anti-nationals', however, backfired”, says Khalid.
He points how over the years, a bridge has been built between students and society, because of which the anti-CAA movement is being led by students, even when it isn’t a student issue. "Students have been able to provide the role of a leadership, returning the debt of the tax payers,” adds Khalid.
The growth of political awareness among the youth is another factor for the galvanisation of the student movements, as Jamia student Mohammad Sajjad points out. “At present, it is the university students who are working as the main opposition as many intellectuals are being targeted and booked under various cases. The sole reason why students are able to question the government is because they are reading and understanding what is happening in the country. Unlike the ones in the opposition who are either not well-informed or are unable to go against their party line, students, no matter the number, are able to put their point across,” says Sajjad.
While students are at the forefront, citizens from various backgrounds and age groups have stepped forward to support them. “They realise that 18-20-year-old students are not just fighting for themselves but for everyone. Also, this movement is sustaining is because we students have no personal motives behind it. Our only concern is if the constitution doesn’t sustain then what will be left for the nation,” adds Sajjad.
“The parliament’s door is closed, the executive is a part of the parliament and we have no hope left in judiciary,” says Ray R, 24, DU LLB student, adding, “So, the only option left is coming out on the streets, be it the students, transgenders, sex workers and women. Protests have been taking place in Hongkong for months, even they didn’t witness the extent of police brutality as is witnessed in universities across India. Sadly, as long as the BJP has a legislative majority, they are not going to care, so the only option is to vote them out from every state.”
PhD student Arun Patel from JNU says that the protests are their democratic right, something propagated by Mahatma Gandhi himself.
“Universities are the most progressive part of a society and now these spaces are viewed as demonic, and that is causing a problem. Today, JNU students are fighting against a joint force of the government, Delhi Police, the university administration and security guards, who are unable to manage a university. From the fee hike to changing a renowned university to a WhatsApp university and not recognising the JNUSU and now extending the dates of registration has left us students confused and agitated. So, the simple way we are using is our constitutional right of non-violent protests which has been time and again answered with violence across universities.”
So, where is the movement heading?
When the student movement against CAA and NRC started, many assumed it won’t last for long. Students were time and again belittled and the movement was shown as their unwillingness to study. “The government is scared, immature and impatient and they think students are the same. They think they can attack the students and we will not be able to sustain the movement for long. However, the main attack isn’t through police, their lathi charge or bullets that we saw in Jamia. The main attack is ideological, through the media, but now we know how to handle it and counter both the police and the media,” says Khalid.
The students are determined to go on with the movement till the CAA is withdrawn, however, the government is not showing any signs of stepping back. “This movement is going to go on till they accept our demands. Talking about the larger student movement, I don’t see an end to it any time soon as I don’t see an end to the government’s anti-student policies and their attempts of refashioning university spaces to put across their ideological agenda of Hindutva,” adds Khalid.
Ray points to the women of Shaheen Bagh, Jamia and AMU, who have shown them the way. “The only way forward is to continuously protest on the streets as Dr BR Ambedkar use to say ‘Educate! Agitate! Organise!’”