On December 15, Saluting Jamia Resistance
Faisal Khan, shown with a red circle. Sitting back and allowing others to lead the discussion.
On December 20, 2019, several HfHR board members were on a visit to India. Faisal Khan, National Convener of Khudai Kidmatgar, invited an HfHR contingent — board members Sunita, Raju, Deepak and Giri and advisory board member Akriti — to Sabka Ghar (Everyone’s House), a beautiful space for unity and peacemaking in Delhi which he had created for the activist community. This was just 5 days after the attack on Jamia Millia Islamia University by the Delhi police.
The CAA had been announced on December 12th, and protests started almost immediately on college campuses. On December 15th, Delhi police forcefully entered the Jamia campus and brutalized students with sticks and tear gas. Over a hundred students were arrested. It was a traumatic and demoralizing event which was followed by similar attacks on other universities including Aligarh Muslim University and Jawaharlal Nehru University.
When we arrived at Sabka Ghar, we were welcomed with garlands of flowers and chai. Most of the people gathered to meet us were Jamia students. We expressed our horror at what had happened on their campus, and offered our love and solidarity. The students, most of whom were Muslim, didn’t dwell on the trauma they had so recently endured. They were very disturbed by what was happening in India, but on this evening they wanted to hear from us. They asked us many questions: We have never heard of a group like Hindus for Human Rights — what does it do? Do you get attacked for speaking as Hindus against Hindutva? How do you manage with family members who disagree with you? It must be so hard to speak about Muslim rights in the Hindu community.
It was an incredibly open and honest exchange. It was on this evening that we invited Faisal Khan to join our advisory board, and he accepted without hesitation.
On Dec 15, 2020, we salute the student leaders of Jamia Millia Islamia University, and all the student leaders in India. We pledge our solidarity to you all.
And we grieve for our brother Faisal Khan, who has been in jail for 6 weeks, for the “crime” of spreading love.
