Eight-year-old Ananya Yadav values her schoolbag the most because it holds her Hindi, English, and "ginti ki" (maths) books. She dreams of becoming an "IAS adhikari" to "protect the country." On March 21, during a demolition drive in Uttar Pradesh’s Ambedkar Nagar, a shed close to her bag caught fire. Without any hesitation, Ananya ran to save it.

Ananya did not know that a video of her running with her bag would become very popular and even reach India’s Supreme Court. During a hearing, Justices A. S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan talked about the viral video and said it had "shocked everyone." Justice Bhuyan mentioned, "There is a recent video in which small huts are being demolished by bulldozers. There is a small girl running away from the demolished hut with a clutch of books in her hand. It has shocked everyone."

Recalling the incident, Ananya said, "I was afraid my books and bag would get burnt. I went back to my mother afterwards." She was also worried that her school might not give her a replacement bag.

Family claims land ownership; officials deny wrongdoing

Ananya’s grandfather, Ram Milan Yadav (70), explained that their family had been living on "two biswa" of land for 50 years. He said that when officials arrived for the demolition, they were trying to explain that a legal case over the land was still pending in the tehsil court. However, during the demolition, a thatched shed somehow caught fire.

"Woh video dekh ke bahut neta log aa rahe hain. Kuch samajh mein nahi aa raha (Many politicians have visited us since the video went viral; we don’t understand what’s happening)," said Ananya’s father, Abhishek Yadav, a labourer who said he does not want any trouble.

Her grandfather added, "It was not a big deal until people started approaching us about the video. All we know is that we will continue to fight for our land."

Officials say video is misleading

After the video became popular, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav shared it, and a team from Congress visited Ananya’s family. However, government officials who were part of the demolition said that neither Ananya’s home nor the place where her bag was kept was damaged.

Sub-divisional magistrate Pawan Jaiswal stated, "We served Ram Milan a notice two months ago to clear the encroached land. When we went to clear it, they started protesting. We do not know how one of the thatched structures caught fire, but it was brought under control. Later, one of the structures was demolished, but it was all non-residential."

Regarding the viral video, Jaiswal clarified, "The structure where the girl ran from was not even touched. It was at a distance from the structure that caught fire." He added that an FIR had been filed against "fake" videos linking Ananya’s story to the demolition.

As the debate continues, Ananya’s simple act of protecting her books has brought national attention to land rights, government demolitions, and the struggles of ordinary citizens.

 

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