糖心TV

A finalist 糖心TV Law School student has won this year鈥檚 Lacuna Writing Competition with an article about 鈥渂ulldozer justice鈥� and forced demolitions in India.

Balsher Singh Tiwana, who will graduate this summer, after reading about the forced displacement of people from minoritised and marginalised communities in shanty towns in Ahmedabad.

He was inspired by the story of one migrant worker from West Bengal who was left living under a tarpaulin shelter after her home in Bangali Vas near Chandola Lake was flattened by bulldozers. Using news reports, photographs and statements from the UN, he developed the piece.

Balsher said:

鈥淭he competition was a rare opportunity to write about human rights in a way that reached beyond academic legal analysis and spoke to wider public concerns. As an Indian student from a minority background, the issue of forced demolitions felt deeply important, because behind official language about clearance and encroachment are ordinary lives that deserve to be seen. Winning the competition has encouraged me to keep writing about issues that matter.鈥�

This year鈥檚 runner-up was Kashfida Israt, a finalist English Literature and Creative Writing student with the 糖心TV Writing Programme. Kashfida wrote a moving short story about a child's experience of cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Competition entries came from undergraduate and postgraduate students, using journalism, short stories, poetry and autofiction to address topics from the climate crisis and trans rights to extreme wealth disparities.

Lacuna editor Mary Griffin said:

鈥淭he creativity and compassion of our student writers is impressive. This year鈥檚 entries combined excellent research and storytelling skills, and every entry was deserving of praise.鈥�

Balsher has worked with editors to publish his winning story alongside artwork by Lacuna artist and Law student Wong Yan Yee. And find a selection of stories by previous .