“How much a soul does cost/How many lives will be lost/before we can stop all the pain/ until we can live free again/ to purge the injustice we feel/to scream for the cruelty repeal/ stop casting our lives to the wind/pretending you haven’t sinned/ freedom is bleeding…”
The International Abhaya Anthem has been released on 21 October 2025 at the Press Club Auditorium by the initiative of the Global Solidarity Community and Abhaya Mancha.
The impact of Abhaya’s brutal murder caused a storm all over the world. Various intercontinental Facebook and WhatsApp groups were formed mainly by Bengalis living abroad to demand justice for Abhaya and to stand against oppression and corruption. One of them is the Global Solidarity Community. Its spokesperson Parmita Iman Roy set the tone of the program at the beginning – ‘silence in the face of injustice is not an option’.
Dr. Tamonash Chowdhury, one of the convenors of Abhaya Mancha, started the programme at 5:10 pm IST. Parmita Iman Roy, Indraneel, Ivy Rahman, George Colburn, Kerry, Mark and many others joined from different parts of the world through Zoom conference. The dignitaries on the stage were Abhaya’s parents, renowned music director Kalyan Sen Barat, sculptor Asit Sai, the creator of the Abhaya bust, installed at RG Kar Hospital, Everest-winning mountaineer and discoverer of the Abhaya peak- Debashis Biswas, football coach Mridul Banerjee, former bureaucrat and Rajya Sabha member Jahar Sarkar and promising teenage singer Aratrika. The song was penned by George Colburn, an internationally renowned poet of resistance living in Minnesota, USA, member of The Vietnam Veterans of America, and guest artist at the Global Empathy Conference 2025. The song was translated in Bengali by Indraneel, who lives in USA. He has been directly associated with the Abhaya movement since its inception. The anthem was sung in both English and Bengali by the incredibly talented singer – sixteen-year-old Aratrika. The vivacious anchoring of the entire programme by Dr. Tamonash Chowdhury and Dr. Subarna Goswami was matched with the spirit of protest.
Abhaya’s parents expressed their displeasure and deep resentment against the planned inaction of the Central Bureau of Intelligence and the protracted nature of the judicial system. They said that the protesting people and doctors are with them, they will not give up this fight. They will be with the protesters till the end. Protesters from all over the world have become part of their family since they lost their daughter.
Quoting sources obtained through RTI, Jahar Sarkar said that the state government is spending crores of rupees on lawyers’ fees to cover up corruption. This huge amount of money is coming through extortion. Giving dole with one hand, extortion through other – this disgusting cycle must be stopped immediately.
At the request of Dr. Subarna Goswami, Aratrika sang some parts of the song without any instrumental accompaniment. Aratrika dedicated this song not only to Abhayadidi, but to all Abhaya sisters.
On behalf of the Joint Platform of Doctors, Dr. Hiralal Konar and Dr. Punyabrata Gun released the two songs. Dr. Gun said that freedom is bleeding everywhere – in Bengal, in India and all over the world. The people in Bengal have united to resist corruption, terrorism and violence against women. Expressing gratitude to the global solidarity community for showing solidarity with the Abhaya Mancha, he said, ‘We shall overcome someday…’
Reported by Gopa Mukherjee
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