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Author: Maya

IIM Director on UAPA: Progressive Society will Not have Law that Inflicts Punishment Without Guilt

IIM Director on UAPA: Progressive Society will Not have Law that Inflicts Punishment Without Guilt

News 18 / by Eram Agha

Expressing displeasure at the amended Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act (UAPA) 2019, Errol D’Souza, the director of Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad said that a progressive society will not have such a law…
Persecuted Prisoners Solidarity Committee as mentioned in the tweet of the director was founded with the motive of fighting for the adivasis and marginalized in the armed conflict zones of central and eastern India. Activists, academic Stan Swamy, Sudha Bharadwaj, Partho Sarothi Ray are associated with the platform.
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Navlakha had links with Pakistan’s ISI, says NIA in Bhima Koregaon chargesheet

Navlakha had links with Pakistan’s ISI, says NIA in Bhima Koregaon chargesheet


Ranchi, Oct 2020

The Print / by Ananya Bharadwaj

New Delhi: In a supplementary chargesheet filed in the Bhima Koregaon case, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has accused activist Gautam Navlakha for his alleged links to Pakistan’s intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
According to the NIA sources, Navlakha’s involvement came up in the “secret communications with CPI (Maoist) cadres” that he had on several occasions.
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The Indomitable Spirit of Father Stan Swamy

The Indomitable Spirit of Father Stan Swamy

The Wire / by Mari Marcel Thekaekara

Stan Swamy and the adivasis he supports in an impossible battle for their own ancestral lands are pawns pitted against mammoth mining companies. Falsely branding activists as Maoists is the easiest way to condemn to enable vested interests to finish them off.
“No, it’s not possible,” were my first thoughts when I heard that Father Stan Swamy, an 83-year-old Jesuit priest and activist had been arrested – for the second time. His crime? He defended the rights of adivasis being exploited in their homeland Jharkhand.
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Varavara Rao denied medical care: Family

Varavara Rao denied medical care: Family

Mumbai Mirror / by Shruti Ganapatye

Jailed activist and poet Varavara Rao is being looked after by co-prisoners Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira rather than competent medical authorities in Taloja Jail in Navi Mumbai, his family have said.
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Stan Swamy, Gautam Navlakha and Anand Teltumbde among eight named in NIA chargesheet

Stan Swamy, Gautam Navlakha and Anand Teltumbde among eight named in NIA chargesheet

Stan Swamy, Gautam Navlakha and Anand Teltumbde among eight named in NIA chargesheet

09/10/2020

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

The chargesheet, which runs over 10,000 pages, accuses all eight activists of conspiring to further the ideology of Communist Party of India (Maoist).
The National Investigation Agency on Friday filed a chargesheet against eight activists, including Gautam Navlakha, Anand Teltumbde, 83-year-old Stan Swamy and Delhi University professor Hany Babu, for their alleged involvement in inciting violence at Bhima Koregaon in 2018, PTI reported.
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NIA Files Chargesheet in Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad Case

09/10/2020

Press Release by NIA India

Click to enlarge

NIA chargesheets eight accused in Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon case

09/10/2020

The Indian Express / by Express News Service

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Friday filed a supplementary chargesheet before a Mumbai court against eight persons in the Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon case.
The first chargesheet filed by the central agency since it took over the probe from Pune police in January is against academic Anand Teltumbde, activist Gautam Navlakha, Delhi University associate professor Hany Babu, members of cultural group Kabir Kala Manch— Sagar Gorkhe, Ramesh Gaichor and Jyoti Jagtap—Jharkhand-based Jesuit priest and tribal rights activist Father Stan Swamy and absconding accused Milind Teltumbde, who is alleged to be a top operative of banned CPI (Maoist).
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Various Solidarity Statements: We stand with Fr. Stan Swamy / Petition: Drop the false charges immediately!

Various Solidarity Statements: We stand with Fr. Stan Swamy / Petition: Drop the false charges immediately!

Pictures: Ranchi, 9 Oct 2020

Petition: Drop the false charges against Fr Stan Swamy immediately!

09/10/2020

Petition initiated by George Pattery

We stand together strongly to condemn the false allegations and defamatory charges  against Fr Stan Swamy by the Pune police, under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967 (UAPA). These charges frame him in the Bhima Koregaon case, call him an “urban naxalite”, and accuse him of plotting the assassination of the Prime Minister. They are patently false and defamatory.
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‘Distressed, troubled’: Ranchi Catholic Church demands Stan Swamy’s release

09/10/2020

The Indian Express / by Express News Service

On Thursday, Father Stan Swamy was taken into custody from his Ranchi home in connection with the Elgaar Parishad case. He was brought to Mumbai from Ranchi and produced before a court at 1.30 pm today which then directed him to be sent in judicial custody till October 23.
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Statements by Social Justice and Ecology Secretariat (SJES), Society of Jesus & Jesuit Conference of South Asia

09/10/2020

Click to enlarge statements

We Stand With Stan Swamy

09/10/2020

By Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha

The recent arrest of Stan Swamy is a gross violation of human rights and democratic norms
Two thousand people condemn the arrest of tribal rights activist Stan Swamy by the NIA on 8 Oct 2020 and urge @HemantSoren JMM to oppose the arrest.

Click to enlarge full statement

‘Preposterous’, ‘Witch-Hunt’: Twitter Outraged Over Stan Swamy’s Arrest In Bhima-Koregaon Case

09/10/2020

HuffPost / by Rohini Chatterji

An 83-year-old activist, Stan Swamy, was arrested by the National Investigative Agency on Thursday, the lates in the series of arrests of activists in the Bhima-Koregaon case.
He was taken into custody from his home in Ranchi.
Swamy’s arrested created outrage with many taking to social media to protest it.
Here’s what people said
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PUCL Condemns the Detention and Arrest of Fr. Stan Swamy in Bhima Koregaon Case

08/10/2020

Countercurrents / by PUCL

PUCL is shocked by and condemns the detention and arrest by NIA police team of 83 year old Fr. Stan Swamy from his residence in Bagaicha, Ranchi to take him to Mumbai to be remanded in the Bhima Koregaon (BK) case for allegedly being part of the larger conspiracy to cause unrest.
The inhuman and insincere act of the NIA authorities in arresting Fr. Stan stands out for its sheer vindictiveness for Fr. Stan fully cooperated with the Investigating officers of the NIA when they questioned him in the Jesuit Residence in Bagaicha for over 15 hours, on July 27th, 28th, 29th, 30th and 6th August. Despite his advanced age and other age related ailments, Fr. Stan patiently answered all queries put to him.
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Democracy in Higher Education, Social Justice and the Importance of Hany Babu

Democracy in Higher Education, Social Justice and the Importance of Hany Babu


Delhi, Aug 2020

Countercurrents / by Dr Ajay S Sekher

We are going through one of the most dismal times in the history of post-independence India. Anyone who resists, anyone who speaks for the greater common good, for truth and justice, is getting hounded. Hate campaigns are unleashed against them or they are implicated under fabricated charges and thrown into prison.
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In Conversation With Ambedkarite Activist Suvarna Salve

In Conversation With Ambedkarite Activist Suvarna Salve

Feminism India / by Shivani Chunekar

A transcript of an interview (originally in Marathi) of Suvarna Salve.
… What are the qualities of the artists that inspire you?
Suvarna Salve: Activists like Sagar Gorkhe, Ramesh Gaichor, even Sudhir Dhawale have contributed immensely to the Ambedkarite movement. I always wondered how someone could be this dedicated to a cause, leaving behind their personal life and dedicating their entire lives to the movement. This dedication and immense persistence inspires me and has a place in my heart.
I have worked with Sudhir Dhawale for four years after his initial release and I have seen myself grow during the time I worked with him. I consider myself much more politically developed and mature now than I used to be before I worked with him…
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NHRC asks for home ministry’s reply over Amnesty India’s decision to halt operations

NHRC asks for home ministry’s reply over Amnesty India’s decision to halt operations


AI #FreeBK11 poster

NHRC asks for home ministry’s reply over Amnesty India’s decision to halt operations

30/09/2020

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

The NHRC referred to Amnesty India’s statement and said the group’s allegations were ‘serious in nature’ and have been strongly answered by the home ministry.
The National Human Rights Commission on Wednesday issued summons to Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla and the Ministry of Home Affairs, in relation to Amnesty International India’s decision to stop operations in India as the government allegedly froze its bank accounts. The commission has sought the replies within six weeks.
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Amnesty International says work in India halted after govt freezes bank accounts

29/09/2020

Hindustan Times / by Arpan Rai

Amnesty further claimed that it has been compelled to let go of staff in India and pause all ongoing campaign and research work …
The government had declined permission to receive foreign funds to Amnesty International India Foundation Trust that has been critical of security agencies in several cases including the arrest of activists such as Sudha Bharadwaj, Rona Wilson and Varavara Rao, who was accused of being a Maoist ideologue.
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Amnesty International India Shuts Down, Blames Government’s ‘Reprisal’

29/08/2020

The Wire / by Sukanya Shantha

The decision, which will see close to 150 employees lose their jobs, came after the recent move by the Enforcement Directorate to freeze the organisation’s accounts.
Mumbai: After a successful eight-year run in India addressing several crucial human rights violations amid growing hostility and the government’s clampdown on civil liberties, Amnesty International (AI) India has decided to shut its operations in the country. The decision, which will see close to 150 employees lose their jobs, came after the recent move by the Enforcement Directorate to freeze the organisation’s accounts.
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Decimation drive – The recent arrest of three Dalit rights activists

Decimation drive – The recent arrest of three Dalit rights activists

Frontline / by Anupama Katakam

The recent arrest of three Dalit rights activists in connection with the Elgar Parishad is seen as an attempt to stifle dissent.
MEMBERS of the Kabir Kala Manch (KKM), a Pune-based cultural activist group, knew it was only a matter of time before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) reached their doorstep. The NIA arrested 12 people in connection with the Elgar Parishad, and as one of the primary organisers of the meeting that hosted 250 Dalit organisations, the KKM was definitely on the radar.
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