They said, “Study hard, my child,
One degree will change your fate”.
So we buried sleep beneath books,
Believing success would patiently wait.
Our parents stitched their dreams to ours,
With overtime, loans and silent pain.
They watered hope with every sacrifice,
Praying their struggles weren’t in vain.
Before the exam, our bags were checked,
Our pockets searched with endless care.
Transparent bottles, admit cards, IDs
Honesty stood waiting there.
Yet somewhere beyond those guarded gates,
Where greed quietly shook a hand,
The question paper changed its owner,
Before the exam had even began.
A message flashed on the screen
“Examination stands cancelled today”
A sentence short for those in power,
A lifetime lost along the way.
Dreams remained locked inside notebooks,
Tears remained behind brave smiles.
Students counted postponed tomorrows,
While justice walked a thousand miles.
Then people asked, “Why protest?”
Because silence never changed truth.
They’re not fighting against exams, 
They’re fighting for the nation's youth.
No one can dent your creativity
No one can steal your honest art
No cancelled exam can ever erase
The courage living in your heart.
So rise again, with hope unbroken,
Let determination be your guide
For dreams survive 
In those who never hide.
The future belongs not merely
To those with ranks and degrees
But to minds that keep learning,
To hands that build and 
hearts that believe.
 

 
                                          By Vasavi Barde