DU Beat in Conversation with Abhinandana Pratyashi

Abhinandana: So, hello everyone! My name is Abhinandana, and I am from North East, Assam. Assam is very popular for its floods, right? You must know Assam like that, but it is much more than that, because today I have become the first ever North Eastern Tribal person to contest for DUSU. I did my schooling in Assam, and I was the state topper both years. Now, I’m in Hindu College, pursuing Sociology Honours. I’m from SFI (Student Federation of India). 

Neeraja: Thank you for the introduction! I would like to start with, what do you think is the biggest challenge that DU students face right now? And how do you think you could improve on it?

A: See, the biggest challenge that Delhi University is facing right now is the hegemony of muscle and money politics that we see everywhere, right? We understand how the status quo prevails. People who are part of the hierarchy never want anybody else from below or outside the hierarchy to come and take space. And this is what that is personally, and that’s why socially and organizationally happening to me as well. Being a queer and being a Northeastern person, right? So, all these muscle and money politics and organizations that we see around ourselves, they are so visible. They have the money to visibilize themselves, right? So, they always take power over issues that are much more grounded. Those issues that need to be addressed, right? Like, for example, any of these issues that SFI is picking up. We can talk about fee hikes, we are talking about metro passes, and we are talking about women’s safety. But all of these issues, most of the time they are either co-opted by people who are not really affected by them or like just overpowered by muscle and money politics. So, this is like the biggest issue that we have right now. And the only way to challenge this or to combat this is with ground-level work. Unless there is proper education, there won’t be agitation.  And unless there is agitation, there won’t be an organization. And only when we have an organized mobilization of people, and only then, can we have some real change. And which is visible right now. So, right in front of me in my team, that’s Sneha, right? Sneha is standing right there. So, Sneha, without muscle and money politics, without the visibility of muscle and money politics, she was contesting last time; she gained 9000 votes.  And the person who won instead of her gained around 12,000 to 13,000. Look at the margin; this is a very small margin. So, this is the ground-level work we are talking about while combating the muscle and money politics that we see around ourselves.

N: Absolutely, thank you so much. Can I know some insights into the key pointers within your election manifestos?

A: Election manifestos, see, we are very grounded in the common student problems. First of all, the fee hike. Not many can afford to pay the fee that we are seeing right now. And that too, that is hiking, right? So, in Hindu College, in sociology honors, I am paying above 25k. If I had not had the scholarship that I have right now, I would not have even dreamt about coming to Hindu College and studying. I would have had to drop my education. And this is happening everywhere. Like in the Law Faculty, the fee before the new education policy, 3-4 years back, was Rs. 3000; now it is Rs. 8000. We see this constant fee hike. And in equivalence to that fee hike, we don’t even have basic to basic facilities. Like I said, I am from the North East, and Hindu College does have a girls’ hostel. But even there, I did not have the chance to get a seat in the hostel. So, if a girl from the North East is not getting a seat, then who will? You know the very popular case about the Hindu college boys’ hostel? It’s been privatised to such an extent that it’s been under construction for the past five years. In comparison, it took six years to build the Burj Khalifa.  And this is a problem everywhere. We are talking about affordable hostels so that the children do not have to commute so far, so that the students are not exploited by the PG mafia, the flat mafia. So, affordable education, first of all, means there is no fee hike. There should be a choice of accommodation. There should be a choice. There should be good and cheap food in the canteen. There should be a metro pass. See, a common student like us cannot afford to have our commuting prices go as high as 60 rupees in a single day. 100 rupees in a single day. That means, in a month, that is 3000 rupees, 2000 rupees. And you will see that the organizations with muscle money politics are roaming in big cars, BMWs, Thar, etc. What difference will it make to them that a common student like us cannot pay so much, right? So, this is one of the biggest issues we have been picking up in our manifesto. Because the students should at least get a concessional metro pass. Because it is simply very visibly non-affordable for our students, right? And apart from that, if we go to some branches of the points, Northeastern representation, of course, queer representation, of course. Because this is our space. Queer people say that half the sky isn’t enough. Of course, it’s not enough for us. We want representation. We want at least some kind of reservation. In the Hindu College Parliament, we have reservations. We are demanding the reservation of queer individuals, not just women, right? Not just cis-hetero women, but queer individuals, like I said. Along with that, basic issues, basic humanitarian issues. That xenophobia shouldn’t be there. That homophobia shouldn’t be there. That transphobia shouldn’t be there. So, these are some of the issues we are talking about. Like, basic to basic issues we are talking about in our manifesto.

N: That sounds amazing.  As you said, there are increasing financial crises that are happening. Like, the metro price hike, a fee hike, and hostel unavailability. How are you going to advocate for someone who is, like you said, the common student?

A: See, this is a very relevant question. Because this is seen everywhere. You must know that when we were contesting, the contestants who were contesting for the election had to sign a bond for 1 lakh. Right? So, a common student who comes from a marginalized background, the background I come from, I can’t even dream of contesting and having some representation in Delhi University Students’ Union. Because if you are signing a bond for 1 lakh, how will I pay the money? The people who are roaming around in cars can, of course, pay for it. But the one who is coming from a marginalized background, the already ostracized, is being continually ostracized. When you are putting up such bonds, when you are putting up such demands. So, this is a success of the panel that we are standing in, SFI AISA, our coalition of progressive organizations. So, you must know that the High Court has taken back this bond. Because we protested, we submitted a memorandum. So, when you ask how we combat these financial issues, that is combating. Combating can only happen through organization.  As I said, until there is no education, there will be no agitation. Without agitation, there will be no organization. People will have to organize on these common issues. Not just this 1 lakh bond. See, the rule passed by the Lyngdoh Committee this time, that people can’t throw around pamphlets. Because these pamphlets name people, reminding them, who can do that? The one who has muscle and money power, who has such funds, who has resources. So, people like us, coming from an ostracized background, have very little chance. Right? If we can’t have pamphlets flying around, how will people remember our name? How many times can we campaign, going from person to person? We can’t hire people to give away flyers. You must have seen, outside the college, people wearing Doraemon’s costume, Nobita’s costume, distributing flyers. We can’t hire such people. So, this time the Lyngdoh Committee has passed, so you can’t have such defacement. It can’t happen anymore. So, this is something that is, on a very minute level, combating the muscle and money politics, combating the financial discrepancy that we see. And, like, that’s why we are moving towards a more egalitarian election this time.

N: Like you said, this is something that might be personal to you also. DU has a diverse student culture across campuses, cultures, etc. How do you think you can represent people from all factions if you get elected?

A: See, even if you are from Bihar or if you are from Manipur, everyone is getting a free hike. Just because you can afford it, doesn’t mean you should have to. Because education is a fundamental right. Student mobility is a fundamental right. Students’ safety on campus is a fundamental right. So, the question of diversity pushes it further in a better direction. Here, fighting elections in a diverse environment, it’s much more inspiring because we see that, even after having a diverse background, these people are facing the same issues. So, it reinstates our power, in the idea, in the concept of the common student. Free hikes are happening with everyone. When a woman is exploited here, it’s not just about what background she is coming from; on the way, anyone can be catcalled. Right now, the background I come from, if a classmate from a different background comes from the North-East, she will be called a chinky here. I am queer, visibly queer, if a rich queer, or a poor queer, whose visible representation is queer, they will be hurled with homophobic slurs. So, I understand how class can have an impact on the discrimination we face, but just because of class differences, there is no discrimination against anyone. It’s not like that. Discrimination can be in different hierarchies. Like, a Dalit woman is more exploited, right? But that doesn’t mean that an upper-caste woman is not being exploited. So, in SFI, we believe in the organisation, until all of us are free, none of us are free. So, when I talk about diversity, diversity is one of the most positive things that we can have, when moving, when we are talking about our common student issues. 

N: What are some of the specific, achievable targets with which you can show your progress to students? How can you measure it, and how can you show it, in a specific sort of way?

A: When we say achievements that we have had as a common students’ organisation, first of all, I can talk about Hansraj. In Hansraj, the administration got land to make a girls’ hostel, right? And this is the case, everywhere. I mean, there is a space in SRCC, there is land in MLNC, to make a hostel, but the hostel is not being made. So, when this happened in Hansraj, then the admin said, No, we will make a cow shed here. Then, SFI, the common students’ organisation, protested that yes, you can make a cow shed. Of course, you are doing a good deed. Do a good deed outside the college. What is the right inside the college? What is the fundamental right of the girls? To make a hostel so that students are not exploited by the PG mafia. Expensive, unsafe PGs should not be there. Today, because of these protests, in Hansraj, a girls’ hostel has been set up. This is the power of a common students’ organisation. In JNU, you will see that the SFI AISA union has won many times in JNU. A left panel always wins in JNU. In JNU, you will see, every single student has access to the hostel. What they pay in a month for the room rent is 10 rupees. This is the power of a common students’ organisation. In Miranda, you will know, Miranda’s hostel fees are very popular for their low cost, right? And why is that? When in the middle of the night, the fee in Miranda went up 5000, right? See, 5000 might not mean much to people with BMWs and Thars, but 5000 means a lifetime to us. When it went up, SFI protested,in the middle of the night, and the fee was lowered, I mean, so this is the power of a common student’s organisation. And we were talking about concessional metro passes, right? At Hyderabad University, SFI has formed a union. Now, every single student in Hyderabad University has a concessional metro pass. They get 60% off. The 80 rupees we pay here, they pay 35 or 40 rupees there. This is the power of a common students’ organisation. So, when you say achievable things, when we talk about achievements, it is also an inspiration for us, that yes, when a common students’ organisation comes to power, things can happen. Now, I am from Hindu College. In Hindu College, there was a very regressive culture, V-Tree Pooja, Virgin Tree Pooja. When I came in my first year, in Virgin Tree, they used to hang water-filled condoms. They used to paste pictures of women whom they wanted to break their virginity with. When I came in the first year, my picture was also pasted there. It’s clearly a type of harassment, right? So, along with SFI, I had protested, and today, V-Tree Pooja doesn’t happen there anymore. This is the power of a common students’ organisation. Be it fee hike, be it affordability, accessible hostels, metro passes, or be it misogyny. All of these fights have been achieved, all of these things have been achieved, with SFI being in the union, without SFI being in the union. Because, whether it is an election or not, whether you are a common student or not, if you are a common student, then you have to fight, always.

N: Absolutely. Thank you so much for the interview!

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Neeraja Unnikrishnan

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