Asha – Page 71 – free them all

Activist Gautam Navlakha moves Bombay High Court seeking regular bail

12/12/2022 Asha

by Bar & Bench (Dec 13, 2022):
#SupremeCourt to hear plea by Bhima Koregaon accused Gautam Navlakha, in connection with the terms of his house arrest allowed by the top court.

Gautam Navlakha moves HC seeking regular bail

13/12/2022

Hindustan Times / by HT Correspondent

Civil rights activist Gautam Navlakha on Monday moved the Bombay high court seeking regular bail in the Elgar Parishad–Bhima Koregaon violence case.
Earlier, a special NIA court had on September 5 rejected the regular bail plea of the 70-year-old, who is presently under house arrest on medical grounds in Navi Mumbai.
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Bombay High Court Issues Notice On Gautam Navlakha’s Bail Appeal In Bhima Koregaon case

12/12/2022

Live Law / by Amisha Shrivastava

Journalist and activist Gautam Navlakha, who is an accused in the Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad case, has approached the Bombay High Court in appeal against rejection of his bail application by the trial court.
The division bench of Justice AS Gadkari and Justice P. D. Naik on Monday issued notice to the NIA in the case.
Read more

Also read:
● Activist Gautam Navlakha Walks Out of Prison, Put Under House Arrest (The Wire / Nov 2022)
● Supreme Court dismisses NIA’s application for vacating its order granting house arrest to Gautam Navlakha (The Leaflet / Nov 2022)
● Gautam Navlakha’s bail plea rejected by special NIA court (Scroll.in / Sep 2022)

Hany Babu moves Bombay High Court seeking interim medical bail

10/12/2022 Asha

Hany Babu moves Bombay High Court seeking interim medical bail

09/12/2022

Bar & Bench / by Neha Joshi

A division bench of Justices AS Gadkari and PD Naik asked NIA to check the reports annexed to Babu’s petition and posted the matter for hearing on December 13.
Delhi University professor Hany Babu has approached Bombay High Court seeking interim medical bail in the Bhima Koregaon case of 2018.
Babu who has spent over 2 years in judicial custody has sought release from custody for a cataract surgery, treatment of his upper abdominal pain and osteoarthritis in a private hospital in Mumbai and post treatment recuperation at his own expense.
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Elgar Parishad case: Hany Babu seeks medical bail in HC

10/12/2022

Hindustan Times / by K A Y Dodhiya

56-year-old Babu, a professor of English Literature, spent over two years in judicial custody. He has sought his release for cataract surgery, treatment of his upper abdominal pain and osteoarthritis in a private hospital in the city and post-treatment recuperation at his own expense.
Former Delhi University professor Hany Babu, who is currently lodged in Taloja jail, has approached the Bombay high court (HC) seeking interim medical bail in the Elgar Parishad case.
Read more

Also read:
● Bombay HC Denies Bail to Hany Babu in Elgar Parishad Case, Upholds Trial Court Verdict (The Wire / Sep 2022)
● Relatives of BK16 Flag Prison Authorities’ ‘Criminal Negligence’ and Deteriorating Health of Undertrials (Newsclick / Sep 2022)

On Human Rights Day, a look at India’s surging human rights abuses / Personal liberty in India

10/12/2022 Asha

On Human Rights Day, a look at India’s surging human rights abuses

10/12/2022

National Herald / by NH Web Desk

The adoption of Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is marked as Human Rights Day on December 10, and December 2023 will mark the 75th anniversary of its adoption by the United Nations General Assembly.
… According to the Human Rights Watch, Indian authorities brought politically motivated cases, including under draconian sedition and terrorism laws, against human rights defenders, student activists, academics, opposition leaders, and critics, blaming them for the communal violence in February in Delhi as well as caste-based violence in Bhima Koregaon in Maharashtra state in January 2018.
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Rights day: Call for release of Sikh political prisoners

11/12/2022

The Times of India / by TNN

Chandigarh/Jalandhar/Bathinda: Human rights activists, academicians and various religious activists on Saturday asked the Centre to release all political prisoners.
… In Faridkot, farmer body Kirti Kisan Union (KKU) along with Naujawan Bharat Sabha (NBS) and Punjab Students Union (PSU) took out a protest march and accused the BJP-led Centre of “not caring for the rights of protesting people and putting activists in jail on flimsy grounds”. They also accused the Centre of “mistreating activists” arrested for Bhima Koregaon and Delhi riots.
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The situation of personal liberty in India

11/12/2022

Indica News / by Justice Markandey Katju

Justice Markandey Katju is a former Judge, Supreme Court of India, and former Chairman, Press Council of India.
In his Hamlyn Lecture, Lord Denning, the celebrated Judge of England, said, ” Whenever one of the King’s judges takes his seat in Court there is one application which by long tradition has priority over all others, and that is an application for a writ of habeas corpus. The counsel has only to say ‘My Lord, I have an application which concerns the liberty of a subject’, and forthwith the judge will put all other matters aside and hear it ”.
But what is the position in India?
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Amnesty International: Act now to demand the release of the BK16!

10/12/2022 Asha

By Amnesty International

Since 2018, Indian authorities have arrested 16 activists under a draconian anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in connection with the Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad case. 11 of them continue to languish in prison without trial.
The repression of activists must end. 
…
INDIAN AUTHORITIES MUST RELEASE ALL IMPRISONED ACTIVISTS IN THE BK16 CASE!
Act now to urge the Union Home Minister of India, Amit Shah to: 
► Drop all charges against the 16 activists and immediately release the 12 who remain in detention  
► Pending their release, ensure that they are granted prompt, regular, and unrestricted access to medical care and other basic necessities  
► Repeal or substantially amend the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. 
Read full statement / sign petition

Interview with Sudha Bharadwaj: One Year in Exile

09/12/2022 Asha

By Workers Unity

hindi | 36min | 2022

Eminent trade union activist Sudha Bhardwaj was released on 9 December 2021 after being in jail for three years. She is not allowed to go out of Mumbai. How has this one year been for her, Chhattisgarh has been the field of work, the regret of not being able to go there, what were her experiences in jail, what were the challenges of being a trade union leader as a woman. Workers’ Unity talked to him in detail on these subjects.
Watch video

Also read/watch:
● ACTIVIST SUDHA BHARADWAJ WALKS OUT OF JAIL AFTER OVER THREE YEARS / SPONTANEOUS CELEBRATIONS (Dec 9, 2022)

● Video: The Conditions of Prisoners in Indian Jails

By All India Lawyers’ Association for Justice – AILAJ / March 2022

en | 1:21:23 | 2022
The huge number of undertrials, the overcrowding, and the disproportional numbers of Dalit, Muslim and Adivasi prisoners are part of the prison problem in India.
We are joined by Adv. Sudha Bharadwaj for a discussion on the Conditions of Prisoners in Indian Jails.
Watch video

● Sudha Bharadwaj speaks – A Life in Law and Activism

Publisher: Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL)
Edition: January 2021
Language: English
Sudha Bharadwaj’s interview by: Darshana Mitra and Santanu Chakraborty
Pictures credit: PUCL
Cover Design / Layout: Vinay Jain
Paperback: 316 pages
Access a free PDF copy of the book here:
Sudha_Bharadwaj_speaks (2,1 MB)

Thousands gather at Chaityabhumi to pay homage to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

07/12/2022 Asha

Dalit women must fight for rights: Ambedkar’s granddaughter

07/12/2022

Deccan Herald / by DHNS

Referring to the Bhima Koregaon case, she said Dalits are steadily adopting a “silent stance,” despite being attacked regularly across the country
B R Ambedkar’s granddaughter Ramabai Anand Teltumbde on Tuesday appealed to women to ‘unite and fight’ for scholarships and employment opportunities, indirectly hitting out at the Modi administration.
Read more

Thousands gather at Chaityabhumi to pay homage to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

07/12/2022

The Hindu / by Sonam Saigal

People of all ages, young and old, calling themselves ‘Ambedkar,’ gathered at Chaityabhumi, the cremation ground of the Father of the Indian Constitution.
Thousands of men, women and children from across Maharashtra came to Mumbai on Tuesday to pay homage to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar on his 66th death anniversary.
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Public meeting ‘Thoughts Criminalised’ in Delhi

05/12/2022 Asha

By Campaign Against State Repression

Press Release

Click to enlarge

Also read/watch:
● Supreme Court’s suspension of Dr. G.N. Saibaba’s acquittal: ‘Technical grounds are also substantive’, says senior advocate, Mihir Desai (The Leaflet / Oct 2022)
● Inconsistencies in Bail Orders Mean Individual Liberty Is Now the Outcome of Judicial Lottery (The Wire / Oct 2022)
● Pandu Narote’s Death: A Reminder of Stan Swamy’s Demise, GN Saibaba’s Struggles (The Quint / Sep 2022)

● Video: Personal Liberty and the Indian Courts

25/10/2022

en | 1h 42min | 2022
The discussion examines the recent three judgements relating to
► The denial of bail of Jyoti Jagtap by the Bombay High Court in the Bhima Koregaon Conspiracy case.
► The stay on the Bombay High Court judgement of acquittal/discharge of Dr. GN Saibaba and others by the Supreme Court
► The denial of bail by the Delhi High Court of Umar Khalid in the Conspiracy case of the Delhi Riots of 2020.
Watch video (PUCL fb page)

What does bail for Teltumbde after 2.5 years say about the judiciary and democracy in India?

03/12/2022 Asha

AllIndiansMatter.com / by Ashraf Engineer

Hello and welcome to All Indians Matter. I am Ashraf Engineer.
Anand Teltumbde, one of the 16 accused in the Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad case, finally walked out of prison on November 26 after his bail was upheld by the Supreme Court. Many experts opined that him having to wait two and a half years for bail was an abject failure of the judiciary. Speaking after his release, the scholar-activist said: “I am obviously happy to be released after 31 months for which I have been in prison. The sad part, however, is that we had to spend time in jail for years after being booked in a fake case…” The 73-year-old anti-caste writer had been in prison since 2020 under the Draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, or UAPA.
Podcast / Episode transcript
en | 12:43min | 2022
Listen to podcast / Read transcript

Bhima Koregaon Accused (BK16) | 1 Dead, 1 on House Arrest, 3 on Bail: What of the Rest?

30/11/2022 Asha

The Quint / by Rohini Roy

The remaining 11 continue to languish in jail — Who are they and what is the status of the case against them?
Anti-caste writer Anand Teltumbde, who walked out of jail on Saturday, 26 November, after he was granted bail on merits in connection with the Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad case said:
“I am definitely happy. It has been 30 months that I have been in prison. The sad part, however, is that we had to spend time in jail after being booked in a fake case.”
In the same case, two others, poet Varavara Rao and lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj – were granted bail earlier due to different reasons, while academic Gautam Navlakha was allowed house arrest on health grounds by a 19 November Supreme Court order.
Read more

Also read:
● As Bhima Koregaon case completes its fourth anniversary, State reprisal is writ large in its twists and turns (The Leaflet / June 2022)
● Bhima Koregaon: Who’s who of those arrested and the developments in the case pertaining to each (The Leaflet / June 2022)

Will the bail granted to Anand Teltumbde help others in the case to get out of jail?

28/11/2022 Asha

Will the bail granted to Anand Teltumbde help others in the Bhima Koregaon case to get out of jail?

28/11/2022

Scroll.in / by Umang Poddar

This is the first bail in the case granted on merits. But experts say that the case of each Bhima Koregaon accused will have to be considered individually.
On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld Bombay High Court’s November 18 order granting bail to Anand Teltumbde, an accused in the Bhima Koregaon case. Teltumbde is the first person accused in the matter to be granted bail on the merits of the case. Previously, others in the case have got bail only on medical grounds or due to procedural lapses by the investigating agency.
Read more

Supreme Court’s Widely- Praised Bail for Anand Teltumbde should be Followed by Wider Justice in Elgar Case

28/11/2022

Countercurrents.org / by Bharat Dogra

Supreme Court’s firmness in upholding the Bombay High Court’s order granting bail to Anand Teltumbde has been widely appreciated. However, we must also listen to what this 73 year old distinguished scholar activist, coming out after spending 31 months in prison, had to stay regarding the case in which several other distinguished activists have also been implicated: “the sad thing is that this is the fakest case and it put us behind us behind bar for years.”
The reference here was of course to the notorious Elgar Parishad case which has been attracting strong criticism from several human rights and democracy activists during the last few years.
Read more

Also read:
● Bhima Koregaon: Who’s who of those arrested and the developments in the case pertaining to each (The Leaflet / June 2022)