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Month: May 2020

Why Activists Want Prisons Decontested

Why Activists Want Prisons Decontested

Newsclick / by Subhash Gatade

The Supreme Court also wants to reduce the Covid-19 risks posed by overcrowded jails, but there is little progress so far.
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COVID Treat in Jails Is Real,
Ailing Inmates Must Be Released Now

The Quint / by People’s Union for Democratcic Rights

PUDR expresses apprehensions over the health status of Anand Teltumbde and Gautam Navlakha who surrendered before the NIA in Mumbai and Delhi respectively on 14 April 2020. Both are implicated in the Bhima Koregaon case of January 2018 in which eleven human rights defenders have been arrested.
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Misuse of UAPA by Union Government During COVID-19 Pandemic

Misuse of UAPA by Union Government During COVID-19 Pandemic

Newsclick / Press Release by Activists and Citizens of India

Condemning Misuse of UAPA by Union Government during COVID-19 Pandemic and Standing in Solidarity with Individuals & Civil Society Organisations Experiencing Targeted Crackdown
We, a group of activists and citizens of India, express our deep concern over the recent arrests on the false pretext that have been taking place using the regressive Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) by the Union government.
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Covid-19 Pandemic: Crackdown On Dissent Putting Lives At Immediate Risk In India

Covid-19 Pandemic: Crackdown On Dissent Putting Lives At Immediate Risk In India


Campaign poster, 2019

By Amnesty International India

The Government of India’s ongoing crackdown on dissent and free speech is leading to the arrest of journalists, activists, lawyers and students under repressive laws and being sent to overcrowded prisons which are potential COVID-19 hotspots. This crackdown during the pandemic puts their lives at immediate risk, said Amnesty International India today.
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MORE THAN 300 ACTIVISTS CONDEMN ARRESTS, HARASSMENT OF ANTI-CAA PROTESTERS

The Wire / by The Wire Staff

‘We have reasons to believe that the investigation is being (mis)used to crackdown on political dissent,’ write the signatories. …
These arrests seem to mark the continuation of a disturbing trend: the BJP government’s practice of covering up the violence committed by Hindutva groups by blaming democratic activists and citizens for the same, and its general disregard for the lives of citizens. Gautam Navlakha and Anand Teltumbde have been arrested over the Bhima Koregaon violence of 2018, even as its real perpetrators such as Milind Ekbote (a leader of local Hindutva groups) roam free.
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