A library Delhi Police just couldn’t book

On 20 June, the Cockroach Janta Party — a meme page which evolved into a youth movement — called for a sit-in protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, demanding the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan, Union education minister, over corruption reflected in exam paper leaks and irregularities. The All India Students’ Federation (AISF) decided to start a library at the site.

The intention behind it was quite straightforward. “For protestors, Jantar Mantar was going to be their home for the next few days,” said Viraaj Devang, national president of the AISF. “You chant slogans the whole day and listen to speeches. But you also have a lot of time to yourself. In situations like these, books are perfect company. Our idea was for protestors and students to read literature and improve their social and political consciousness.”

The student activists brought a wooden table and covered it with a red cloth, which read: ‘Pradhan Must Fall’. On the first day, “we had books on Shivaji Maharaj, Bhagat Singh and Babasaheb Ambedkar”, said 20-year-old Mohit, one of the student activists who ran the library on a daily basis. “A protest without revolutionary literature is like a leader without ideology. Literature guides protestors on how to resist and rebel.”

The titles included Shivaji Kaun Thhey, a Hindi translation of the Marathi book by Govind Pansare, who was murdered by Hindu extremists; Bhagat Singh vs. RSS, which analyses the ideological difference between the revolutionary leader and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh; and the collected works of B.R. Ambedkar, among others.

“We believe that even if one person reads any of these books, they will tell 10 others about it. That is how incremental change happens,” said Mohit. The library also had books by Premchand, children’s literature and the autobiographies of scientists. “The scientific temperament in our society is going down,” Mohit added. “So we thought we should have some of that too.”

However, immediately after the AISF set up their library, Delhi Police officials objected, saying that it was illegal. “We told them this was a free access library, that there was no commercial angle. After arguing a bit, the police went back,” Devang said.

But that wasn’t the last time the police would poke the library.

Over the next 10-12 days, the pile kept getting bigger as well-wishers at the protest site donated more and more books. The register filled up with entries, as more people borrowed them. On 2 July, the police returned.

Devang recalls: “This time they said it [the library, that is] could cause a stampede, and that people have a problem with it. The protestors immediately gathered around and said that wasn’t the case!”

Like Mohit, Vishal, also twenty, uses only his first name. He was minding the library at the time. “The police had a problem with it, not the people,” he said. “We refused to dismantle it.”

This time around, the Delhi Police people dug in. “They desecrated the books of Bhagat Singh, Shivaji Maharaj and Babasaheb Ambedkar,” said Devang. “They must apologise for insulting our national heroes.”

An official said to Vishal, “Seems like you want to be a neta!” and detained him. Vishal’s colleague, Bittu, was also dragged away by the collar because he was recording the interaction on his phone.

Vishal and Bittu say that after being detained, abused and beaten up by the police, they were also threatened with a long-drawn court case. It was only after their AISF friends reached the police station and raised a hue and cry over their detention that they were released.

“I wasn’t scared because of the police,” Vishal said. “I was scared my parents would find out.”

Vishal comes from a small village in Rajasthan. His father is a farmer, his mother a homemaker — they have no idea their son is a student activist. “They might not let me stay in Delhi if they find out,” he said.

When he returned to the protest site, one of the first things Vishal did was to set up the library all over again. The AISF, associated with the Communist Party of India, managed to bring back the books and had it up and running. The register notched up 1,500 entries over the next few days.

On 20 July, the CJP along with student organisations like the All India Students Association (AISA) and AISF, issued a call for a peaceful march to Parliament.

For 25 days prior to this, Ladakh-based environmental activist Sonam Wangchuk and student activists Neha Bora, Manish Kumar and Aameen Amitoj were on a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar with the same demands: accountability and transparency in exams and state recruitments.

Tens of thousands of people — largely youth — swarmed the streets of Jantar Mantar amidst heavy police and security deployment. As the day progressed, slogans were drowned out by the hiss of tear gas and shouts as the police lathi-charged the peaceful protestors. Head wounds gushed blood. Young women had their clothes torn. Even minor students were not spared. At least three were hit by pellet guns of the kind notorious for blinding many in Kashmir.

The library was destroyed in the process. “The police threw away the table and the books,” Vishal said. “The canopy above it was brought down. We had decorated it with posters and banners. Those were destroyed. You couldn’t imagine that a library had ever existed here.”

Despite the injuries, the damage and the brutal crackdown, the protestors returned to Jantar Mantar and reclaimed the site. That same night, Vishal was busy laying out books on a table at the same spot. The number of books was not as many, but he was making a statement. “The library will be here as long as the protestors are,” he vowed.

Five days later, on 25 July, Pradhan resigned amidst growing pressure. The student activists and protestors celebrated a win. AISF activists quietly wrapped up the library and distributed the remaining books among their comrades.

“Why would anybody be afraid of books?” Devang asked. “To be afraid of books is a sign of cowardice.”

Original article courtesy: People’s Archive of Rural India