Persecution – Page 72 – free them all

Bombay HC Orders Transfer Of Stan Swamy To Hospital [read order] / Poem by Stan

29/05/2021 Maya

He Needs Treatment: Bombay High Court Orders Transfer Of Stan Swamy To Private Hospital From Prison [read order]

28/05/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

The Bombay High Court on Friday directed the Maharashtra government to transfer ailing Father Stan Swamy, an 84-year-old tribal rights activist – to the Holy Family Hospital from Taloja Central Jail for treatment. He is accused in the Bhima Koregaon – Elgaar Parishad case.
In an urgent hearing, a bench of justices SS Shinde and NR Borkar allowed Swamy hospitalisation and an attendant after Senior Advocate Mihir Desai submitted the Jesuit priest’s condition was not improving.
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Bombay HC sends Ft Stan Swamy to Holy Family hospital for medical treatment; brushes aside NIA’s objection

28/05/2021

The Leaflet / by Gahena Gambani

The Bombay High Court on Friday directed the Maharashtra government to transfer Father Stan Swamy, 84, accused in the Bhima Koregaon caste violence case, to Holy Family Hospital from Taloja Central Jail.
A vacation bench comprising Justices SS Shinde and NR Borkar heard the matter on an urgent basis and ordered the transfer.
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By Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha

The pandemic has put the spotlight on inhumane conditions in Indian prisons

26/05/2021 Rani

Drawing by Arun Ferreira

The Indian Express / by Teesta Setalvad

They are overcrowded, unhygienic and have little oversight. There’s a need to expand use of house arrest as punitive measure.
The prison, it is famously said, holds a mirror to society. The conditions within prisons, to stretch this analogy, reflect the quality of any democracy. By that yardstick, India needs soul-searching. Not only has our collapsing criminal justice system ensured a mockery of reasonably speedy trials but tardy and often skewed (if not biased) investigations and prosecutions have ensured that undertrials languish in jails for decades. Courts rarely step in to ensure a thorough investigation and robust prosecutions, or a time-bound conclusion to trials.
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► Also read/ watch: Bhima Koregaon, COVID-19 And Custodial Apathy In Jails / Video + Press Release (May 15)
► Also read: Crowded Jails & COVID: 16 Bhima Koregaon Accused’s Kin Share Fears (The Quint, May 18)

Chronology of harassment against human rights defender Sudha Bharadwaj

24/05/2021 Maya

CIVICUS / by CIVICUS

Today marks exactly 1000 days since human rights lawyer & activist Sudha Bharadwaj was arrested & detained on fabricated charges.
Sudha Bharadwaj, aged 59, is a human rights lawyer and activist who has spent her life defending Indigenous people in India and protecting workers’ rights. She has been in pre-trial detention since August 2018, when she was arrested under the draconian Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) on trumped up accusations of having links with Maoist terrorist organisations, based on evidence believed to be fabricated.
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Also read: The Sudha Bharadwaj the Govt Doesn’t Want You To Know (article14, Jan 2021)

Bombay High Court disposes of plea seeking medical bail for Sudha Bharadwaj

21/05/2021 Rani

All prisoners have right to get their medical reports, rules Bombay HC

21/05/2021

Free Press Journal / by Narsi Benwal

Sudha Bharadwaj says she got sufficient medical attention and thus doesn’t need bail on health grounds.
The vacation bench of the Bombay High Court led by Justice Shahrukh Kathawalla on Friday held that every prisoner has the right to their own medical records under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The HC made the observation while disposing of the medical bail application filed by daughter of jailed activist Sudha Bharadwaj, who told the bench that she has received the requisite medical attention and now doesn’t need bail on health grounds.
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Disposing of the medical bail application filed by daughter of jailed activist Sudha Bharadwaj

21/05/2021

Updates by Live Law (May 21)

+++ Her daughter Maaysha Singh approached court after three of her co-prisoners tested positive for Covid-19 +++
+++ Adv Yug Chaudhri – This is a petition for medical bail. The petitioner was taken for numerous medical tests after the petition was filed +++
+++ Yug – Prisoners have a right to their medical records under Article 21. Medical records should be provided to them. This will cut down a lot of litigation +++
+++ Yug – He should be allowed to talk to his family members & lawyer after a hospital visit +++
+++ Court Order — Prisoners have a right to their own medical records under Article 21. In view thereof all medical records including tests conducted and medicines prescribed should be given to the prisoner on request +++
+++ Court – Infact we would go a step further and say that this should be done for every prisoner +++
+++ The bench further said that a prisoner should be allowed to make a phone call to an approved family member after a hospital visit +++
+++ Chaudhry said that since Bharadwaj has received the necessary medical attention after they approached the court, he is not pressing for medical bail +++
+++ Petition disposed of with the above observations +++

Sudha Bharadwaj’s 3 Co-Prisoners Tested COVID Positive: Daughter Moves Bombay HC Seeking Release On Medical Grounds

14/05/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

It is said that Sudha Bharadwaj is kept in a barrack with 50-60 prisoners, sharing only 3 bathrooms, with no possibility of social distancing and sanitary co-existence.
The Bombay High Court on Thursday sought lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj’s latest medical report from the Maharashtra Government on a plea seeking her interim release on medical bail from Byculla women’s prison.
The petition filed by her daughter Maaysha Singh, invoking Article 226 of the Constitution, states that the sixty-year-old Bharadwaj, who has diabetes and a history of pulmonary tuberculosis, is very unwell.
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Bombay High Court calls for medical report of Bhima Koregaon accused Sudha Bharadwaj in plea seeking bail on medical grounds

13/05/2021

Bar & Bench / by Neha Joshi

The vacation bench directed the Maharashtra government to produce Bharadwaj’s latest medical report by Monday. Bharadwaj is presently lodged at the Byculla women’s prison.
The Bombay High Court on Thursday directed the Maharashtra government to submit by May 17, the latest medical report of Bhima Koregaon accused, advocate Sudha Bharadwaj in a plea seeking her release from prison on medical grounds (Maaysha Singh v. State of Maharashtra & Anr).
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HC asks Maharashtra to submit Bhima Koregaon accused Sudha Bharadwaj’s medical report

13/05/2021

The Print / by pti

According to her counsel, Sudha Bharadwaj was kept in a ward of the prison with 50 other women under extremely unsanitary conditions, and with just three toilets for all of them.
The Bombay High Court on Thursday directed the Maharashtra government to produce the latest medical report of lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj, an accused in the Elgar-Parishad Maoists links case, who is is currently lodged at the Byculla women’s prison here.
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Can neither walk, write nor eat. Talojia jail has brought me to this situation: Fr Stan Swamy tells HC

21/05/2021 Rani

Can neither walk, write nor eat. Talojia jail has brought me to this situation: Fr Stan Swamy tells HC

21/05/2021

The Leaflet / by Gahena Gambani

The Bombay High Court Friday ordered the Taloja Jail authorities to follow the recommendations made by JJ hospital about the treatment and the facilities to be provided to octogenarian Father Stan Swamy, an accused in the Bhima Koregaon case.
A vacation bench comprising Justices SJ Kathawalla and Surendra passed the order while hearing a bail application by Stan Swamy on medical grounds.
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I Would Rather Suffer, Possibly Die Very Shortly If This Were To Go On: Stan Swamy Pleads For Interim Bail In Bombay HC

21/05/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

“Only one thing that I would request the judiciary is to consider for interim bail. That is the only request”, he said.
Father Stan Swamy, an 84-year-old tribal rights activist, who is an undertrial in in the Bhima Koregaon- Elgar Parishad case, pleaded with the Bombay High Court to grant him interim bail to go back to his home in Ranchi.
He told a division bench led by Justice SJ Kathawalla that his health has progressively deteriorated in the eight months he has spent a Taloja Prison. Adding that being in Taloja has brought him to a situation where he can neither eat, write, bathe or go for a walk by himself.
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Hany Babu can be moved to another Mumbai hospital for treatment, rules Bombay HC

19/05/2021 Rani

Hany Babu can be moved to another Mumbai hospital for treatment, rules Bombay HC

19/05/2021

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

The professor had sought better medical aid as the hospital where he was admitted was not treating his acute eye infection.
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday allowed Delhi University Professor Hany Babu to be moved to Mumbai’s Breach Candy hospital for treatment, reported Live Law. The professor is an undertrial prisoner in the Bhima Koregaon case.
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“Nothing Wrong If This Becomes A Precedent In Present Times”: Bombay High Court Directs DU Prof Hany Babu To Be Shifted To Breach Candy Hospital By Tomorrow

19/05/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

The Bombay High Court has directed Delhi University Associate Professor Hany Babu, who is covid -19 positive and suffers from black fungus infection, be shifted to Breach Candy hospital by tomorrow.
Babu was arrested in the Bhima Koregaon – Elgaar Parishad case on July 28 2020, by the National Investigation Agency.
A division bench of Justices SJ Kathawalla and SP Tavade observed that the patient deserves to be treated in a hospital of his choice in the current situation when NIA tried to oppose the plea saying it would become a precedent.
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Bombay HC Says Committee of Doctors Required to Examine Stan Swamy / Sets up video call with Swamy on May 21

19/05/2021 Rani

Bombay HC Says Committee of Doctors Required to Examine Stan Swamy

19/05/2021

The Wire / by Sukanya Shantha

Taloja jail, like most other prisons in the state, lacks proper medical facilities. Over 3,500 prisoners here are handled by three Ayurvedic doctors.
A day after Father Stan Swamy was taken to Taloja Central prison from JJ hospital, the Bombay high court has directed the prison authorities to make arrangements to send him back to the hospital. The division bench of Justices S.J. Kathawalla and Surendra Tavade have also directed the dean of JJ hospital to constitute a committee of doctors including a neuro-physician, ENT, orthopaedic, general physician and any other doctor who might be required to examine Swamy.
The report has to be submitted to the court on May 21, when it is scheduled to hear the case again.
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Bombay HC sets up video call with Father Stan Swamy on May 21

19/05/2021

Sabrangindia / by Sabrangindia

It has also directed JJ Hospital’s Dean to constitute a committee of experts to examine the 84-year old’s health.
During the bail hearing of Bhima Koregaon case accused, Father Stan Swamy, the Bombay High Court has ordered Taloja Central jail to set up a video call with him on May 21 at 10:30 A.M.
The court said, “Taloja having video conferencing facilities, they shall arrange a meeting of the appellant with the court on 21st May at 10.30 A.M.” Father Swamy was taken to JJ Hospital yesterday but was brought back to Taloja jail around midnight.
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Activist Stan Swamy taken back to jail after visiting hospital for tests

18/05/2021

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

Swamy’s colleague said he was taken to a hospital at 4.45 pm on Tuesday and brought back to jail before midnight.
Tribal rights activist Stan Swamy, who is in custody in connection with the 2018 Bhima Koregaon case, was not shifted to a hospital on Tuesday, his colleague told Scroll.in. The 83-year-old’s health had deteriorated and the Jesuits, the Catholic religious order to which he belongs, had appealed to the Maharashtra government seeking medical attention for the activist.
… “The case comes up for hearing today [Wednesday] and we are told the prosecution will submit his medical report.”
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Jailed activist Stan Swamy shifted to JJ Hospital due to poor health

18/05/2021

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

Swamy, 84, suffers from Parkinson’s disease, and his health had deteriorated further recently.
Tribal rights activist Stan Swamy, who is in custody in connection to the 2018 Bhima Koregaon case, was on Tuesday moved to JJ Hospital in Mumbai from Taloja Jail, where he was lodged, a relative of one of the other people arrested in the same matter told Scroll.in.
… Meanwhile, the Bombay High Court is likely to hear Swamy’s medical bail plea on Wednesday, PTI reported.
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Father Stan Swamy finally gets first Covid shot, health continues to deteriorate in jail [read medical note]

18/05/2021 Rani

Sabrangindia / by Sabrangindia

His medical note filed before the Bombay High Court on poor facilities states that Taloja houses 3,251 inmates instead of its capacity of 2,124, with only three Ayurvedic doctors on duty.
Adivasi rights activist and Jesuit Priest Father Stan Swamy has finally been given the first dose of the vaccine against Covid-19 today. This despite the fact that the 84 year old who has multiple comorbidity issues has been eligible to take the vaccine since March 1, 2021. He was reportedly denied the vaccine earlier as he did not have his Aadhaar Card!
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Should the BK16 be left to die? / Crowded Jails & COVID: BK16 Accused’s Kin Share Fears

17/05/2021 Rani

Should the Bhima Koregaon 16 be left to die?

17/05/2021

Rediff.com / by Jyoti Punwani

Consider this:
In 2019, Father Stan Swamy, accused in the Bhima Koregaon case, had to undergo an emergency appendicitis operation because he had insisted on working till the very last day. The doctor wondered how the then 82-year-old Jesuit priest had borne the pain so long.
In the seven months that he has spent in Taloja jail, not once has Father Stan complained, except to ask for a straw and a sipper because Parkinson’s disease doesn’t allow him to have a steady grip on his cup.
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Crowded Jails & COVID: 16 Bhima Koregaon Accused’s Kin Share Fears

17/05/2021

The Quint / by Mekhala Saran

“Please allow us to take care of them,” beseech their family and friends.
“It looks like once you are a prisoner, there is no value for your life,” said Dr Jenny Rowena, a Delhi University professor and wife of Dr Hany Babu, an undertrial prisoner, at a press conference, organised by friends and family of the 16 accused in the Bhima Koregaon case.
Dr Babu is currently COVID-positive and admitted in Mumbai’s JJ Hospital with an acute eye infection that has affected his vision. Spreading to his cheeks and forehead, the infection has caused his eyes to bulge out.
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Also read/watch video: Bhima Koregaon, COVID-19 and custodial apathy in jails / Video + Press Release (May 15)

Bhima Koregaon, COVID-19 and custodial apathy in jails / Audio + Press Release

15/05/2021 Rani

Video: Press Conference demanding immediate release of BK16 prisoners

15/05/2021

By Insaf

en + hindi l 1h20min l 2021
Listen to audio here

Press Release: Covid-19 a virtual death sentence, new persecution tool against Bhima-Koregaon accused

15/05/2021

sabrang / by sabrangindia

Friends and families of undertrial prisoners narrate the worsening condition in Taloja and Byculla prisons, stressing a single fact – jail authorities must allow unconditional bail for all political prisoners!
Families and friends of the 15-accused in the Bhima Koregaon (hereafter called BK-15) case vehemently demanded the immediate release of undertrial prisoners from crowded jails, while talking about jail conditions during a press conference on May 15, 2021.
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Press Release: Bhima Koregaon, COVID-19 and custodial apathy in jails

15/05/2021

By Mumbai Rises to Save Democracy

Press Release
On May 15th, several family members of the 15 prisoners accused in the Bhima Koregaon-Elgaar Parishad case addressed the press via an online press conference. Some of the arrestees have spent three years behind bars and continue to await trial. Even as the COVID-19 pandemic rages with greater intensity, several among those incarcerated have contracted the virus. Most of the arrestees are over the age of 60 and most suffer severe comorbidities. Despite the rapidly deteriorating health of the incarcerated, particularly most recently in the case of Prof. Hany Babu basic medical attention has been denied to them. Demanding that those imprisoned be released on bail in light of the looming threat of the pandemic, Prof. Babu’s wife Jenny Rowena, Adv. Surendra Gadling’s wife Minal Gadling, Fr. Stan Swamy’s friend Fr. Joseph Xavier, Mahesh Raut’s sister Monali, activist Harshali Potdar of Republican Panthers Jatiya Antachi Chalwal and friend of Sudhir Dhawale, Adv. Sudha Bharadwaj’s friend Smita Gupta addressed the press.

Harshali told us of conditions within Taloja Jail from Sudhir Dhawale who informed her that majority of the staff including cleaners and cooks inside prison have tested positive for COVID-19. The hospital inside Taloja is currently treating 60-65 people for the virus. No testing facilities are available inside jail. Instead, the jail is testing people who are fit in order to show that there are no cases. Eight persons inside Sudhir Dhawale and Vernon Gonsalves’ barrack have tested positive. Yet the prison staff have refused to test them. Sudhir Dhawale despite being over the age of 45 has been denied the vaccine as he does not have an Aadhaar card. Despite the fact that his documents have been confiscated by the police, being denied the right to be vaccinated while in the custody of the state raises the question, “whose responsibility is it now?” The letters being sent by them are reaching the family with a delay of over a month and video calls are not available. Despite the Prison Act 1894 that ensures that prisoners are entitled to basic medical facilities. However, in Taloja, there are no doctors, nurses, lab technicians, etc. but only three ayurvedic practitioners. Right to proper food and water, right to intermingle with other prisoners, communication with family members and lawyers through letters and calls, speedy trials, etc. – all of these rights are being violated.

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