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The BJP often portrays student protests as anti-national and undemocratic. Yet its own political rise was deeply rooted in the student movements of the 1970s, from Gujarat's Nav Nirman Andolan to Jayaprakash Narayan's call for Sampoorna Kranti. This article revisits that overlooked history and examines the striking contrast between the protests once celebrated by the Sangh Parivar and the protests it condemns today.
In early September 2025, thousands of students from Assam's Koch, Rajbanshi, and Moran communities took to the streets in Tinsukia and Dhubri, demanding long-promised Scheduled Tribe (ST) status and greater autonomy. Their protests, marked by torchlight processions and a district-wide bandh, were met with police lathi-charges, leaving many injured and sparking outrage. Despite decades of unfulfilled government promises and a conspicuous silence from mainstream media, the resolve of these indigenous groups remains unshaken. With Prime Minister Modi's visit looming, the call for ST status, a separate Kamatapur state, and Sixth Schedule inclusion grows louder, exposing deep-seated frustrations and a broader national pattern of suppressing youth dissent.
In the next few paragraphs, I will lay out a minute-by-minute, year-by-year, date-by-date account for you that may shock you. Names like Peter Haas, Donald Lu, and Yunus Khan will appear in this story. Additionally, St. Martin Island in Bangladesh plays a crucial role. You will understand everything, step by step.
