JNU students hold Umar Khalid book discussion outdoors despite venue cancellation

The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) on Monday went ahead with a scheduled discussion on a book by former JNU student Umar Khalid, with several students and teachers attending the event despite the cancellation of the original venue.

The discussion on Khalid’s book, Fractured Communities: Adivasi Histories and the Politics of Power, began around 3 pm as scheduled, outside the School of Social Sciences-II (SSS-II) building.

The discussion was originally scheduled to be held at the School of Social Sciences-I (SSS-I) auditorium. The event was planned to observe the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, according to the students' union, as reported by PTI.

The university cancelled the auditorium booking, saying that “full facts” about the programme had not been



disclosed.

Following the cancellation, JNUSU termed the decision “arbitrary and authoritarian” and said the withdrawal of the venue would not stop the discussion.

“However, let it be clear: cancelling a room does not cancel a conversation,” the students' union said in a statement.

The union further said that no administrative order could suppress students’ right to “think, question, and discuss”.

After the cancellation, JNUSU announced that the discussion would be held at an alternate venue outside the SSS-II building.

The union called upon students, faculty and staff to participate in the discussion, which proceeded at around 3 pm as scheduled.

The event focused on Khalid’s book Fractured Communities: Adivasi Histories and the Politics of Power.