Neha Bora, 29-year-old PhD student, emerges as Gen Z protest leader against Modi

By Geeta Pandey, Women Affairs Editor, India

When India's Gen Z-led protesters return to Delhi this weekend for demonstrations demanding the resignation of the country's top election official, one of the prominent faces at the forefront will be that of a 29-year-old PhD student.

Neha Bora is a theatre artist and activist who has been with the All India Students' Association (AISA), a Left-wing organisation known for campus politics, for the past decade and has served as its president for the past two years.

But Neha's — who uses "they" and "them" as personal pronouns — visibility is no longer limited to campuses.

Viral videos over the past few days show them being dragged through the street by a group of female police officials, climbing on top of police barricades, raising their fist and shouting slogans, and being detained. Photos of them smiling while being carried away by policewomen have also gone viral.

In a recent BBC Bangla interview, Neha played down the attention they have been receiving.

"I know it happened in front of the camera so it seems like it's something different. But I have seen all student activists with the Left doing the same things that I have been doing. It's just that there is a camera on me, so people think something different is happening."

Background and Rise to Prominence

Born in the northern state of Uttarakhand, Neha lived in different cities as a child as their army officer father moved for his postings. After graduating from Delhi University, they completed a master's degree from Ambedkar University in the capital and are now a PhD student at the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

Neha first came into the spotlight in the summer during the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest over education reforms. Neha and AISA were at the protest from the start, but not many knew them at that point. That changed after June 28, when educationist and scientist Sonam Wangchuk began a hunger strike in support of the CJP, and Neha and a few others from AISA joined him.

"It was an obvious choice for us. We've been protesting against paper leaks and education reforms for a long time," Neha later said in an interview.

While most of the attention was focused on Wangchuk, whose reputation and presence galvanised the movement, Neha's outspokenness and combative speeches began to get them noticed. After Wangchuk and others were moved to hospital, Neha continued fasting despite having lost 8kg. Even after being moved to hospital, they said in a video: "The fight continues. Once I've recovered, we'll meet you again on the streets to continue our fight for our right."

After the protests ended in July, Neha has established themselves as a Gen Z leader courted by the CJP and media, besides appearing alongside Rahul Gandhi at press conferences.

The Broader Protest Movement

The attention on Neha comes at a time when several high-profile protests are being held on India's streets in what is being seen as one of the biggest challenges to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 12 years in power.

• The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP): A Gen Z-led online satirical movement that held weeks-long protests in Delhi in the summer over education reforms. It ended in July only after Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation.
• Opposition parties: Some of India's opposition parties, especially the Congress, have also taken to the streets over electoral reforms. Videos of Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra being shoved, jostled, and detained have gone viral.

Saturday's protest in Delhi has been called by the CJP, which is seeking the resignation of India's Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of manipulating electoral rolls to favour Modi's BJP. Both the Election Commission and the BJP have rejected the accusation. Although not a member of the CJP, Neha has said their group would also participate.

Controversies and Challenges

Neha's involvement with AISA and leftist politics, along with statements criticising PM Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and other BJP leaders, has led to "lots of disagreements with my family as my parents are staunch supporters of BJP."

Last month, at least three police complaints were lodged in Uttar Pradesh state by the BJP against Neha for making "objectionable remarks" against the chief minister. These came two days after AISA filed a police complaint stating that Neha had received death threats.

Neha, who has been travelling to many Indian cities to participate in protests in support of students, also made headlines when a man allegedly threw ink at them during a protest march in Jharkhand state. A photo Neha shared on Instagram showed their face streaked with ink stains. Police said they had detained the man.

A Reputation as a Street Fighter

The noisy protests and repeated detentions have earned Neha a reputation for being a street fighter.

"The streets have always dictated the course of politics in this country and they will continue to do so, more so in the coming few years," they told BBC Bangla. "If we look at the social changes of the recent past, those social changes did not come from people sitting in parliament; they came from the streets."

Now, as authorities gear up for the October 10 protest at Jantar Mantar against CEC Kumar, Neha and AISA have said they would be back on the streets with the CJP to "protect democracy."

Related Topics

• India
• Youth politics
• Asia