Column | Banojyotsna Lahiri: a modern love story
The HinduWhen Jawaharlal Nehru University Ph.D student Umar Khalid was arrested in September 2020 under the stringent Unlawful Activities Act or UAPA, his friends and partner Banojyotsna Lahiri were shocked. Instead she works tirelessly, using humour and compassion to keep Khalid’s story alive, sometimes telling funny stories that pit Khalid against her other true love, footballer Lionel Messi, and sometimes, sharing intimate conversations from their weekly meetings at Tihar Jail. “It becomes a part of your life.” Desire for a just society Lahiri’s fight for justice is emblematic of the love stories of modern-day dissenters, increasingly under threat across the world. “It used to be irritating when he was around, but now that I don’t have to do it, I miss it and feel the void.” Learning law and legalities In Lahiri’s life, the weekly jail meeting, when she talks to Khalid across a glass partition on an intercom, takes precedence over everything else. I’ve gained weight, lost sleep and all this has had concurrent effects on my body,” she says, joking that Khalid’s health, on the other hand, has improved because of the daily prison routine and exercise.
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