Published Sep 13, 2026 | 8:45 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 13, 2026 | 8:45 PM
Umar Khalid
Synopsis: The ABVP demanded the cancellation of a documentary screening on Umar Khalid, saying campuses should not become platforms for political propaganda or glorifying civil unrest. The screening is scheduled for 14 September.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has demanded that the National Law School of India University (NLSIU) in Bengaluru cancel a scheduled screening of the documentary, Prisoner No. 626710 is Present, on imprisoned activist Umar Khalid.
The Law and Society Committee (Law Soc), a student organisation at NLSIU, has scheduled the screening of the documentary, Prisoner No. 626710 is Present, directed by Lalit Vachani, on Monday, 14 September.
ABVP Bengaluru Secretary Abhinandan Mirji said in a media statement that the organisation “strongly condemns the proposed campus screening”.
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He said ABVP had emailed a formal complaint to the NLSIU administration, urging the university authorities to stop the event. He said the administration had not responded so far.
“ABVP emphasises that academic campuses must remain dedicated to national integrity and learning, rather than serving as platforms for political propaganda or glorifying civil unrest,” the statement said.
Khalid, a student leader at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), was arrested exactly six years ago on 13 September 2020, following the February 2020 riots in Northeast Delhi. He has since been in jail, with the trial yet to reach a substantive stage.
The prosecution alleged that he was involved in a conspiracy that led to the riots, which killed 53 people. Khalid has denied the allegation.
NLSIU students said the university was not screening the documentary for the first time. They claimed that it had also been screened last year, on the occasion of Political Prisoners’ Day, marking the death anniversary of Yatindra Nath Das, a comrade of Bhagat Singh, who died while on a hunger strike on 13 September 1929.
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Incidentally, in April 2026, the BJP urged the Bengaluru city police commissioner to cancel a programme titled Umar Khalid and His World, in support of Khalid, at the Bangalore International Centre, Domlur, on 28 April.
All Lawyers Association for Justice (ALAJ), People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), and Bahutva Karnataka organised the Domlur event.
