Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) activist Umar Khalid on Thursday turned 35. The activist has been in jail since February 2020 for his alleged involvement in the northeast Delhi violence.
It is to be noted that Khalid has been charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), and has remained in prison for over two years now.
A number of activists and journalists took to Twitter wishing Khalid on his birthday. Hashtags such as #happybirthdayUmar and #morepowertoUmar have been used to show support to the jailed activist.
Prominent journalist Mohammed Zubair took to Twitter wishing Umar Khalid on his birthday and said, “Wish you a Happy Birthday @UmarKhalidJNU Bhai. You are an inspiration. #HappyBirthdayUmar#MorePowerToUmar ”
Journalist Kaushik Raj wished the activist via Twitter and shared a post on Twitter, where Khalid can be seen taken away by police officials from a protest site during the anti-CAA movement.
Another post shared on Twitter showed solidarity with the activists, appreciating his resolve to stand against the unjust policies of the current regime and said, “Those walks through the corridors are his only moments of freedom, the same corridors of law that keep him behind bars. While Umar and the rest remain in jail to defend the freedom we fought for 75 years ago, we must keep them in our minds.”
Politician and Dalit activist Jignesh Mevani also put up a post wishing the jailed activist and said “Wishing you a very happy birthday @UmarKhalidJNU You have stood strong against this fascist regime. We are in this with you! #HappyBirthdayUmar#MorePowerToUmar “
Lobbies of independent activists, human rights groups, and lawyers have stated that he was arrested and booked under a draconian law for speaking out against the current regime’s legislation on the Citizenship Amendment Act(CAA).
They stressed that the draconian laws were misused to stifle the critics of the government. This was also stated by Umar himself as a foreshadowing of his imprisonment.
Who is Umar Khalid?
Umar Khalid was a student leader at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi. He first made the news when he was accused along with Kanhaiya Kumar and other students of sedition and pro-Pakistan sloganeering in the JNU campus in 2016. He was granted bail and was rusticated from the college for a semester.
Khalid was subsequently booked twice over course of 2020. The first FIR, lodged in Pune, claimed that Khalid’s speech during the Elgar Parishad rally in 2018 was provocative. The second, during the then-president of USA Donald Trump’s visit to India, was also considered to be instigating riots by the Delhi Police.
In the speech, Khalid can be heard saying, “When Donald Trump comes to India on 24 February, we will say that the Prime Minister and the government of India are trying to divide the country. They are destroying the values of Mahatma Gandhi, and the people of India are fighting against them. If those in power want to divide India, the people of India are ready to unite the country.”
On 14 September 2020, Khalid was arrested by the Delhi Police Special Cell as an alleged conspirator in the Delhi Riots case, where activists and citizens were protesting the CAA-NRC bill.
He got bail in April 2021 from Delhi high court, wherein an FIR was registered against him at Khajuri Khas Police station.
The report alleged charges of “criminal conspiracy” against Khalid. However, he had to stay put in prison as other facets of the case were still being investigated. In the bail order the court said that the allegations against Khalid are prima facie true and his role in the “context of conspiracy” related to Delhi riots was apparent.
A number of his bail hearings have been constantly adjourned or deferred in recent times.
