Umar Khalid's mother, Sabiha Khanum, on Tuesday told the large crowd gathered for the release of an anthology of essays on her son: "To see you all standing here will be a source of great strength for Umar."
Yet, as she went on to explain, Umar has often been the source of strength for his family.
The former JNU student has been in jail for over five years, charged under anti-terror laws for his alleged role in protests against the new citizenship regime — protests that police later linked to the 2020 Delhi riots. His bail plea was rejected by the Supreme Court last month. The trial is yet to begin.
Khanum said: "When the SC rejected Umar and Sharjeel's bail, our first thoughts were how would we face Umar? How would we give him hope because we had high hopes for bail from the SC and in fact justice, even if delayed....
"When we spoke to him after the verdict, instead of us finding words to give him courage, it was he who lifted our spirits. The day before the verdict, he had sent a message through someone that he was fine and that I should not worry. He was more concerned about those of us outside the prison than himself."
Khanum added: "He may not have had very high hopes, but hopes were still shattered. We can't say that Umar wasn't affected by it. He is human after all.... I have always felt that we are among our people, and can still freely go about our work, but the real sufferer is Umar.
"We can only imagine what it feels like when your sleep breaks in the darkness of a jail cell and you cannot fall asleep again. But he does not speak of such things. He only tries to reassure us."
Khanum ended her remarks with a question that left many in the audience visibly moved.
"The judges and lawyers and the mehfil of the court know that this is a jhoot ka bakheda (cacophony of falsehood). It's been so long. What do we do for justice for all those children in jail?"
As many as 199 copies of Umar Khalid and His World were sold at the event, held at the Press Club of India.
The anthology features essays and messages from historians Romila Thapar and Ramachandra Guha, academic Anand Teltumbde, writer Mukul Kesavan, Congress MLA Jignesh Mevani, New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani, and actors Prakash Raj and Swara Bhasker. The volume also includes several essays by Umar himself.
Journalist Sreenivasan Jain, who released the book, said: "As a famous philosopher once said, aap chronology samajhiye. Yeh chronology kisi ko samajh nahi aa rahi. That in the morning you jail your critics, and in the evening you say you're the mother of democracy.... Equally farcical is when the ruling regime and their cronies and cheerleaders in the media, when confronted with all of this evidence of the abuse of state power, trot out that much overused phrase that the law will take its own course."
He further pointed to developments in Assam, alleging that the chief minister had made inflammatory remarks about Muslims. "When petitions are moved before the Supreme Court, we are told the court does not wish to enter a political akhada. The official handle of the Assam BJP posts genocidal memes featuring the same chief minister, and there is no action."
Banojyotsna Lahiri, co-editor of the anthology, spoke about the emotional toll of the past five years. "For friends who have visited him in jail and tried to keep track of his well-being, this has not only been a larger fight for justice but also a daily struggle with anxiety — the constant awareness that Umar is in prison."
She described how that absence shapes ordinary moments. "We find ourselves noticing 'Umar-friendly' restaurants and wondering whether, when he returns, this would be a safe place to bring him. That restlessness has become part of our everyday lives."