JNU Event On Umar Khalid's Book Loses Venue Ahead Of Scheduled Discussion
JNU cancels event over Umar Khalid book.
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi has cancelled the booking of an auditorium for a book discussion centred on jailed activist Umar Khalid's Fractured Communities: Adivasi Histories and the Politics of Power. The event, organised by the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU), was scheduled for Monday, August 10, at the School of Social Sciences-I (SSS-I) auditorium. The organisers said the discussion will now be moved to another venue, which is expected to be announced separately. The programme was planned as part of the observance of the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, also known as Vishva Adivasi Diwas.
The event was scheduled to begin at 3 pm and was intended to discuss Khalid's book, which examines Adivasi histories and the politics of power. The book is based on Khalid's PhD thesis, which he worked on while he was a scholar at JNU. The JNUSU general secretary said the original venue had been cancelled but claimed that the student union had not been given a specific reason for the decision. According to the student representative, the programme was initially approved to take place at the SSS-I auditorium, but the venue was subsequently withdrawn.
The union said it would communicate details of an alternative location once arrangements were finalised. The university administration later provided an explanation through its official X account, citing the “non-disclosure of the full facts about the program” as the reason for cancelling the venue booking. JNU also shared the permission letter submitted for the event. In the document, the applicant had described the programme as a “Public Talk for Adivasi Diwas (Book Discussion)”. The university's explanation came after the student union publicly raised concerns about the cancellation.
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The controversy centres on the planned discussion of Khalid's book. Khalid, a former JNU student, is currently in jail in connection with a case linked to the 2020 Delhi riots. His academic work at the university focused on issues related to Adivasi communities, their histories and the relationship between communities and political power. The proposed event was intended to examine these themes in the context of Adivasi histories and contemporary politics. The cancellation of the venue has drawn attention because of the involvement of JNU, which has frequently been the site of political and academic debates. However, the university has not said that the book discussion itself has been cancelled.
Instead, the organisers have indicated that the event will be shifted to another location, subject to arrangements being made. The JNUSU is expected to announce the new venue separately ahead of the scheduled discussion on August 10. The immediate dispute remains focused on the cancellation of the SSS-I auditorium booking and the reason cited by the university administration. While the student union said it was not initially given a particular reason, JNU's official communication subsequently attributed the decision to the alleged non-disclosure of complete details about the programme. Further developments are expected once the organisers confirm the alternative venue.
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