Dear Reader,

A national storm erupted in February 2016 when the Modi government ordered a police crackdown against students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University for slogans raised at a campus event. Three students were arrested on charges of sedition, sparking a fierce debate on nationalism and the erosion of democratic freedoms.

While the mainstream news cycle has long since moved on, the legal and personal consequences for those involved continue to unfold in profound ways. At Scroll, we believe that some stories should not have an expiration date. Our latest series revisits these events, examining the slow grind of the judicial process and the lasting impact on India’s democratic fabric.

Through this reporting, we trace the divergent paths of those once at the center of the storm. Umar Khalid, once a charismatic student thinker and organiser, has spent more than five years in jail without trial. Shehla Rashid, once a fiery student leader on national television, left frontline politics and today teaches sociology in Kashmir. And Anirban Bhattacharya, who stepped back from the spotlight, now works behind the scenes to keep critical public discourse alive.

Independent reporting like this is only possible because of you. We rely on our readers to fund the deep research required for these series. If you value journalism that refuses to look away, please become a Scroll Member today.

Regards,
Team Scroll