Short Story of Student Movement
Photo credit: Alvimann from morguefile.com
Medical College,
Kolkata,September, 2014.
I am writing this letter to you sitting next to your bed in the hospital; monitoring your heart-rate every five seconds. I don’t think you know that I am sitting right next to you. Had you seen, you would have cast me a wary look for still being here at this hour. This is certainly not the place you want me to be in right now. I just came to let you know what’s happening outside and I shall leave soon to join the protest.
It is raining very heavily in Kolkata. The sky is laden with the darkest clouds the city has seen in weeks. Below the grey and blazing thunder there is a stretch of hope. No one could stop the students from gathering. With each passing day, as the weather is getting worse, the number of students assembling is going up. The streets are full of them, their foot-steps are echoing louder than the thunder and their hope will clear the sky.
The police have raised arms on the students; there is nothing that can stop the students anymore. They are not scared of the authority. They challenge the rule. This is not dictatorship. In a democracy, the ruler should be scared of the citizens; not only before elections, but before each time they plan on committing a crime. If we walk on the streets and raise our voices, there is nothing that they can do. Strong water-cannons in a chilly winter in Delhi or lathi-charge at mid-night in West Bengal; we are not scared anymore. It’s time you see why you should be scared of us.
I remember being a little apprehensive on the first night but you had constantly supported the cause. You said that if the cause is right, students will assemble. Beyond colours and ideologies, the students still have their share of conscience even when the world around them loses it. They will still fight for justice forgetting everything else. They are citizens fighting for their rights. There’s nothing greater than this.
It’s not a normal rally that Kolkata has seen. It is one of those rallies which is turning into a revolution that every ruler and citizen will remember in ages to come. When you lose fear and all you are left with is hope, miracles happen even when you don’t realize. The rain is coming down harder than ever but all I can see are the number of umbrellas increasing in the streets. The worst police atrocities will lose against us and we shall go ahead to get what we deserve. Only the weak stay behind, complaining about the changes that never happen. The strong goes and changes it. We shall win this war. We shall earn justice. An unbiased committee will be formed to look into the incident of the girl who was molested inside the campus and the Vice-Chancellor of Jadavpur University will be forced to resign. Before resigning I hope to see him shiver in broad daylight. He will shiver to see our strength, our will, our capacity to not give up; and so will a few others.
It’s not a matter of one college anymore. It is an issue concerning every human being. Outsiders or insiders, there is hardly any distinction. Irrespective of caste, colour, creed, identity, we have held hands and that’s where we win and the rulers lose. Unlike them, we still retain our identity, our cause, our voice and our conscience.
I miss you in the rallies; I miss your voice shouting slogans. I know the lathis have hurt you very badly. When the police brutality had unleashed its ruthlessness upon the unarmed students, I saw you braving every blow and screaming the slogans till you couldn’t speak anymore. I have seen the scars; I have felt your pain. Trust me, from then on I walk the rallies on your behalf, shout your slogans, hold the placard and walk an extra mile for you; for I am not scared anymore. Raising my voice I am going to join them today as well. Together we shall be writing history.
You lived for a revolution. It’s sad that today you are lying inside while the revolution is taking the best of its form outside your hospital. We hope you get well soon to come and join us. We shall welcome you with open arms. Till then, don’t be scared. We are not giving up. We are living your dream, we are living our dreams. Ten-thousands of us are out in the street, living the dream of every independent student. It is not only West-Bengal; Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Guwahati and even the other countries are joining us in our spirit. I can hear the voices, I can hear the slogans; I can hear the foot-falls increasing. I can hear the hearts beating to one united feeling. Let there be the sound of revolution. Hok Kolorob.
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