How Long Can the Moon Be Caged?: Voices of Indian Political Prisoners

Silencing and punishing critical voices is a project that lies at the heart of Narendra Modi's authoritarian regime in India. The BJP's political dream is clear: to achieve the ethnonationalist aim of an exclusively 'Hindu' India while targeting anyone who dares to question or dissent.

In this unique collection, Suchitra Vijayan and Francesca Recchia look at the present of India through the lived experiences of political prisoners. Combining political and legal analysis with firsthand testimonies, the book explores the small gestures that constitute resistance inside and outside the jail for the prisoners and their families.

How Long Can the Moon Be Caged? includes visual testimonies and prison writings from those falsely accused of inciting the Bhima Koregaon violence, student leaders opposing the new discriminatory citizenship law passed in 2020, and activists from the Pinjra Tod's movement. In bringing together these voices, the book celebrates the courage, humanity, and moral integrity of those jailed for standing in solidarity with marginalized and oppressed communities.