1 week ago
Student Activist Links Campus Deaths to India’s Wider Repression
Neha Bora gave a speech in Mumbai about problems faced by students and protesters.
She said poor families make sacrifices so their children can attend coaching and prestigious colleges.
She asked why some students from marginalized communities and genders are dying by suicide.
She connected these deaths to pressure and discrimination inside educational institutions.
She also described police action against protesters at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.
Bora said this anger comes from many events over the past decade, including protests, arrests and hardships during the pandemic.
She blamed the BJP government and some television channels for these problems.
The government and institutions did not provide a full response in the article, although police said no note was found in one IIT Delhi case and the institute said it was checking counselling records.
Bora ended by asking different generations to work together to protect democratic and constitutional values.
Neha Bora, president of the All India Students' Association, addressed about 500 people at a Mumbai event after a 23-day hunger strike.
Bora questioned why student suicides appear concentrated among marginalized castes and genders, citing recent deaths at IIT Delhi and earlier cases.
She accused police of using tear gas and batons against protesters at Jantar Mantar on July 20, after a march drew two lakh to three lakh people.
Her speech connected current student anger to events including Rohith Vemula’s death, the Jamia library crackdown, anti-CAA protests, the farmers’ movement and migrant hardships during COVID-19.
Bora blamed the BJP government and “Godi Media” for repression and manufactured divisions, while calling for solidarity across generations, castes and communities.
- Who
- Neha Bora, national president of the All India Students' Association, spoke alongside artists, activists and political representatives at the event.
- What
- Bora criticized student deaths, institutional discrimination, police action against protesters and the BJP government’s record on dissent and social divisions.
- Where
- The speech was held at the Y B Chavan Centre in Nariman Point, south Mumbai, and addressed events in Delhi and elsewhere in India.
- When
- The event took place after Bora completed a 23-day hunger strike; the article discusses a July 20 protest and a recent IIT Delhi student death.
- Why
- Bora said educational institutions and state authorities were failing marginalized students and suppressing public dissent, making solidarity necessary.
Bora and Protesters’ View
Official Responses Reported
Student deaths and institutional responsibility
Bora and Protesters’ View
Bora argued that educational institutions are pushing marginalized students toward what she called “institutional deaths” and questioned why suicides cluster among marginalized castes and genders.
Official Responses Reported
The article does not provide a full institutional explanation. Police said no note was found in one IIT Delhi case, while IIT Delhi said it was checking counselling records.
Police action at Jantar Mantar
Bora and Protesters’ View
Bora said police fired tear gas and used lathis against protesters, including people who had remained at Jantar Mantar and had not marched to Parliament.
Official Responses Reported
The article reports Bora’s account but does not include a police response explaining or defending the use of tear gas and batons.
Political accountability
Bora and Protesters’ View
Bora said the BJP government had earned young people’s disrespect and described the July 20 anger as the result of a long history of violence and repression.
Official Responses Reported
The article does not include a response from the BJP government to Bora’s allegations, though it notes that she cited Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation and other developments as victories for protesters.
Key facts
- Speaker
- Neha Bora, national president of the All India Students' Association
- Event
- “Dil Se Bol: Mumbai with Gen Z”
- Venue
- Y B Chavan Centre, Nariman Point, south Mumbai
- Attendance
- About 500 people
- Hunger strike
- Bora and fellow protesters had completed a 23-day hunger strike
- Jantar Mantar protest
- The article says two lakh to three lakh people gathered in Delhi for a July 20 march
- IIT Delhi deaths
- The article describes a recent suspected suicide by a 31-year-old MSc Physics student and an earlier death of a 20-year-old first-year BTech student in June 2023
Quotes
Neha Bora
National president of the All India Students Association and speaker at the Mumbai event
“If today the youth of this country look at the BJP government with nothing but disrespect, it's because you've earned it.”
rediff.com
“Why do the suicides keep clustering around students from marginalised castes and marginalised genders?”
rediff.com
Sources
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